Not Interested
by AnnaTom23
Summary: Caroline, student at NYU, lives with her BFF Rebekah, Enzo and Stefan. Her life is perfect till she catches the attention of Klaus Mikaelson - CEO of his own multimillionaire firm. She goes to extreme lengths to avoid him but somehow they always find their way back together. Maybe it's because his sister(& her BFF) is pushing them to be together. Jealous, Dominant, possessive Klaus
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

_**A/N: Hi guys! New story. Yes, I know I'm an idiot to start a new one now when I already have five that need to be updated but inspiration strikes at such difficult times. By the way, I'm in India right now and it is BEAUTIFUL! Next stop is Pakisten. Anyone from Pakisten? **_

_**Anyways, WARNING: This story will feature extremely possessive, dominant, jealous and control-freak Klaus. But don't worry Caroline's isn't going to play the damsel. She's going to give him an equally tough time. ENJOY and don't forget to review. **_____

"Seriously?!" Caroline exclaimed annoyed as she came rushing out of her bedroom to the kitchen. "Bekah that's the living room sofa!" she complained as she watched her friend who was passed out on the couch, in their living room with a naked guy underneath her.

This was the thing she hated most about Rebekah who had been playing the role of her dutiful best friend/ flat mate/ helper and wardrobe assistant. She had met Rebekah around 5 years ago. Though they were enemies at first sight, fighting for the title of prom queen, president student council and Miss Mystic Falls in senior year of high school, they became friends afterwards. So close that once they went to college, both of them stayed together and decided to share a place while they both got their bachelor's degree from NYU stern school of business.

Caroline went because of her love and passion for the field while Rebekah attended as some sort of tradition. And to answer the unheard question, yes, Rebekah belonged to an extremely well off family with sources but it had a lot of ups and downs. She had to follow the family legacy and join Leonard N. Stern School of Business which was exactly as its name sounded. Stern. Boring.

Caroline shook her blonde friend once. Rebekah stirred lightly mumbling something in her sleep but that wasn't what made Caroline scrunch up her nose in disgust. It was the stench of alcohol and sex. EW! She was _not _going to sit anywhere in the living room. Ever again. "Rebekah Mikaelson! You're lucky I'm getting late right now but when I get back, this _hunk_ better be gone and you and I are going to have a word" she warned hitting her friend lightly, before walking to the closet and draping a blanket on her friend.

Caroline hurriedly grabbed her keys, slung her bag over her shoulder and made her way down to the street for her _other _best friend to pick her up. As expected a red 1963 Porsche 356B Karmann Coupe pulled up against the sidewalk and Caroline quickly jumped in.

"Morning" she greeted putting on her own sunglasses.

The blonde smiled back at her. "Good morning to you too Care bear" he replied with a wide smile.

"Don't be so chirpy Stefan. I had the worst morning ever" she groaned running a hand through her hair as she looked towards her best friend. She had been friends with Stefan way longer than she had been with Rebekah. Caroline and Stefan Salvatore were practically born and raised together except that he was a year and a half older than her which made him her senior but he was always there for her and somehow they both ended up in the same places. Like he was here in NYU with her.

"Another _Rebekah_ morning?" he asked trying to hide his amusement.

Caroline grumbled again and made a gagging noise. "Yeah. Every time she gets a call from her family, I'm the one who has to deal with drunk Rebekah and her mess. I couldn't sleep for even an hour last night. She was practically banging the walls…"

"Ew ew! Stop Care. I know you've been traumatized for life but no need to scar my memory" he complained shaking his head in disbelief.

Caroline chuckled. "I just hope I don't fall asleep during the lecture" she said. She looked at herself in the compact mirror. "God! I look like the witch of the wicked west" she whined, horrified by the dark circles around her eyes.

"Don't worry. You'll still like look the most beautiful girl on campus even with all those dark circles and wrinkles" he said and winked at her. "What lecture are you attending right now by the way? Your class doesn't start until late" he inquired turning towards their campus.

"Some boring CEO of a company. Typical 'inherited-millions-turned-them-into-billions' type guy" she said shrugging as he parked the car. "What about you? How are things going with Damon? Has he _found himself _yet?" she asked sarcastically.

Stefan chuckled and shook his head. "Maybe it's Mikael. The guy who has been funding our college. We got two intro lectures freshman year. One extra because the CEO was changed." he explained grabbing his bag and walking out of the car.

Caroline got out too and slung her bag over her shoulder again and started walking in step with him. "You ignored the part about where I asked about Damon which means either you had a fight with him or he's back with Elena" she guessed.

"You know I liked you better when you were whining about Rebekah's glorious _night in_" Stefan teased her.

"Topic changer!" Caroline accused him. "Anyways, I gotta go right now. I'll see you at lunch." she told him rather asking him and started walking away.

"Don't scare the kids too much!" he called out after her.

She turned to glare him but continued back-walking. "Being that hot doesn't make you funny Salvatore!" she badgered him loudly, ignoring the snickers of the girls around her and making him chuckle before he headed off to his own class.

She turned and continued walking briskly until she was in the building. As she was walking, she couldn't help but wonder how the hell she was going to stay awake the whole day. Blame Rebekah Mikaelson for banging some hot guy all night in the living room. Ugh! She needed to wash her eyes and remove the mental image from her brain.

She was pulled out of her musings when she felt someone bump into her and spill a warm liquid all over her chest and neck. "Seriously!" she yelled as she fanned her burning skin. "Can't you watch where you're going?" she complained not looking up. "Jerk" she mumbled under her breath.

"I'm sorry love but you should've been more focused on the way than your imagination" a crisp British accent answered in a cocky tone which made her look up to find a pair of blue eyes staring at her with amusement lingering on his face.

Caroline scoffed at that and started wiping the _tea _from herself. "Okay so if I wasn't looking, which I was, you could've seen me coming. Or were you also _too lost in_ _your imagination_?" she questioned sarcastically. "And you drink tea. How _British_ of you" she said feigning disgust even though _mentally_ she was drooling over his accent in her mind.

Klaus smirked at that and held up his hands in surrender. "Suppose we both weren't looking. We're both at fault then. How about we remedy this right now?" he asked and didn't wait for her to answer. "Have lunch with me this afternoon" he proposed making her narrow her eyes at him.

"Um no. I'm sure I have something or pretty much _anything else _to do than have lunch with you" she declined and started to walk towards the bathroom. _She was going to be so late. _Of course her luck wasn't that good when the guy continued following her.

"Come on love. Don't be like that" he said matching her pace.

"You've already got me late alright? Just leave me alone" she deadpanned.

"Are you a business major?" he asked suddenly.

Caroline smiled way too sweetly at him. "No, I'm studying fashion at a _business school_. Of course I'm a business major" she said shaking her head.

"What's your schedule?" he asked making her stop and turn to him.

"Look" she said and he started staring at her in a creepy way with a dimpled smile. _Oh my God! He has dimples. _"I don't know you. You don't know me. You spilled _tea_ on me and then accused it to be my fault. Judging by your behavior, I'm fairly certain you're one of those spoiled _brats_ who gets in because of their _big_ family name and you think you can get anything you want but let me tell you that's not how it works" she breathed out and crossed her arms over her chest.

Klaus looked at her still amused by her little outburst. "Then how is it that it works?" he asked in a husky voice, leaning closer towards her.

"If you're trying to apologize. Apology _not_ accepted" she said trying not to take a whiff of his scent. "Now if you'll please leave my way. I'm already late" she explained with a tight lipped smile.

He stepped out of her way albeit reluctantly. "Alright. But the least you can do is tell me your name love?" he asked giving her his puppy eyes.

"If I tell you my name will you just go?" she asked sighing as she opened the girls' toilet door.

Klaus raised an eyebrow at that. The girl had guts and she clearly didn't know who he was. He internally grinned like a wolf. Maybe coming back here wasn't that bad after all. "We'll see" he challenged urging her to roll her eyes at him.

"Caroline" she literally spat at him and then smiled at him in a sickly sweet manner. "Bye" she said in a cheery voice before disappearing into the restroom.

Klaus smirked and repeated her name. "Caroline" he recapped. He liked the sound of her name on his lips. One thing he knew now was that he was looking forward to getting to know _his Caroline. _Maybe he'd even enlist his sister's help to find out who this girl was. He was pulled out of his daydreams when he heard the voice of his secretary behind him. "Klaus" she said in her arrogant voice gaining his attention.

"What is it Katerina?" he asked in an annoyed and bored tone. Katherine Pierce or Katerina Petrova, as she was originally named by her parents, had been Klaus' assistant/ care taker for almost since he joined his family's company. She wasn't technically his employee or anything, she only took take care of him and stopped him from going too crazy in the absence of her dutiful boyfriend Elijah, who was also Klaus' older brother. But even though, he respected her on her face, well as much as he could, he absolutely hated her and he was sure the feeling was pretty mutual.

"You're due in five. We have to go" she said not looking up from the screen of her phone. Probably texting Elijah who was gone to England for some work.

"Yeah let's go" he said and started walking with her to the auditorium.

"What were you doing outside the girls' room?" she asked suddenly, making him worried but only for a second before he recovered himself and let out a laugh.

"Saw a blonde, thought it was my darling baby sister. Mistaken" he said shrugging his shoulders. Katherine nodded but she was, obviously, unconvinced. "We have to go to Rebekah's place for lunch too." He added trying to divert her attention. She gave him an offended glare and opened her mouth to object but he stopped her. "Elijah's orders" he said smirking at her, knowing she would not _like _to argue with his big brother on this one.

"Oh joy!" she exclaimed sarcastically before going back to her screen. Once they reached the hall, Katherine went her way and sat in the audience while Klaus went behind the curtain, backstage, watching as the dean finished his introductory speech and welcomed Klaus.

He sighed. _Here goes nothing. _He plastered a polite smile on his face and went to the stage, nodding at the dean who clasped his hand enthusiastically and beckoned him to the podium while the students gave him a bored yet thundering round of applause.

He nodded at them once and smiled at a group of girls, who were not ten seconds ago yawning and were now not only awake but they were also sending him appreciative glances. He nodded at them, too, with a smirk. He was used to this kind of female attention. As he started his speech, his mind started drifting elsewhere. Or rather to someone else. He couldn't help but think about the girl. _Caroline. _She was beautiful. He had to admit but he was more attracted to the fire and spirit within her. Her fearlessness, her confidence.

Spilling his tea on her was his fault. He knew that but he couldn't help but think that she would easily forgive him once she saw who he was but he was mistaken when she bashed him for it. If looks didn't work, he was sure she would've swooned at his accent but he was wrong there too. She wasn't even impressed by his status. Bloody hell, she didn't even know who he was.

The girl was proving to be so different and he had a full intention to find out everything about her.

He couldn't help but hope that she would attend this lecture. The look on her face would be priceless when she would realize that she had turned down lunch with Klaus Mikaelson. And it looked like today was his day because his attention was diverted towards the backdoor of the hall which opened and in walked _his beautiful Caroline. _

She quickly ducked in silently hoping no one would notice her and she wouldn't disturb the whole class and she didn't. Except she had the lecturer's full attention. Klaus continued his speech with even more confidence.

Once Caroline got in, she quickly settled next to Enzo, her class fellow. Well should-be-senior but he had taken a year off after joining which sent him in the same semester as Caroline. They were great friends and Enzo would do practically anything for Caroline because he had a serious thing for her. She, however, just considered him a friend but the amount of time they spent together, they definitely looked like a couple to everyone.

"Have I missed something?" she asked opening her book and still not looking at the guest spokesperson.

"Not much gorgeous" he whispered in her ear, at a conspiring distance. Caroline shook her head and rolled her eyes at him.

"You are coming for lunch right?" she asked confirming his presence. They all usually had lunch together. Rebekah, Enzo, Stefan and Caroline. Even though Rebekah and Enzo despised each other, they tolerated one another for Caroline's sake.

"Of course. Wouldn't miss it for the world" he answered smoothly.

Klaus watched as Caroline sat down with some boy who was definitely older than her. His blood boiled as he watched them shifting closer to each other. Maybe they were in a relationship?

Before he could stop himself, he started speaking a little more loudly and strongly into the microphone, making Caroline look up as she recognized his voice.

"Oh my God" she breathed out in shock. Her eyes wide and her mouth parted. "Who is he Enzo?" she asked pointing towards Klaus.

"That's Niklaus. Or Klaus whatever" He answered shrugging. "Everything alright gorgeous?" he asked watching her go a little pale.

Caroline gulped but nodded nonetheless. Shit! She had just insulted Klaus. The guest speaker. Oh God! She was mortified. Her subconscious glared her and told her she did nothing wrong. He was being an absolute ass and she had just taught him a lesson, which he needed to learn. _Jackass_. She held her head high and looked at him with confidence.

Klaus smirked. The look of shock on Caroline's face was worth the weird glances he got from one of the professors at the front row when he spoke too loud. But he ignored them and focused on the blonde who was, now, ignoring him and whispering in hushed tones to her friend. Or boyfriend. But he was hopeful that wasn't the case.

Just as he finished he winked in the girls' direction and watched as they looked at him with awe and admiration. He shook the dean and the principal's hand again before sitting down on the stage next to the finance professor who was apparently the head of his department. His eyes, however, remained solely focused on the blonde. He was just waiting to count the minutes before she would come to him taking him up on his offer for lunch. That was always the case. Even if any girl refused him, they were just always playing hard to get. Eventually they all came to him.

"I have to say Klaus. It's been a pleasure having you back here" the Dean, Mark, said as he escorted Klaus towards his car.

Klaus smiled politely trying not to roll his eyes at the man's obvious flattery. "Of course. The pleasure was all mine. Have a good day Mark" he said respectfully and nodded before jumping into his SUV with Katherine.

"That was something" Katherine commented looking at Klaus as he drove away. "I wonder why you even got a degree in business. You should've been a drama major" she teased him, impressed by his fake politeness.

"Drama is for you Katerina" he said deliberately using her original name to annoy her. "Now tell me the address to Rebekah's apartment" he ordered going back into his bossy self.

They drove back bickering with each other. Klaus being his usual control freak, bossy-self while Katherine was being snarky and commenting on his flirtations with the college girls in the hall. He obviously gloated proudly over his charms on the ladies but he couldn't help but think of Caroline. He had tried to look for her after everyone was leaving the hall but she had disappeared very quickly from his view with her _friend. _

But he was sure, he was going to see her again. Call it his gut feeling.

"So what's it going to be" Stefan started as he settled on the floor in the living room with Caroline and Enzo. Rebekah as usual was hung over and peacefully sleeping it off. "Thai, Chinese or Indian?" he asked waving the different pamphlets of fast food in his hand.

"Or we could just get pizza" Enzo piped in earning a whack on the back of his from Caroline.

"No" she said glaring Enzo. "We're going to have Chinese" she announced and handed the phone to Stefan who saluted her and went off into the kitchen to call.

Enzo placed his arm on Caroline's shoulder and leaned in closer towards her. "You really have a thing for Stefan don't you?" he asked teasingly but Caroline could detect the underlying worry in his voice.

Caroline leaned in closer. "No I only have a thing for _you_" she whispered sarcastically, her breath fanning across his face. He stared at her and she stared back at him with such intensity. She leaned forward on more inch closing the gap between them, brushing their lips together and just as he leaned forward, she pulled back and started laughing uncontrollably. He closed his eyes and groaned, falling for her little prank again.

Caroline rolled over and clutched her stomach as her laughter grew with each second. Stefan joined her and showed her the picture he took of Enzo and Caroline almost kissing. "Oh my God!" she screeched. "The look on your face Enzo" she chuckled with Stefan waving the picture in his face.

Stefan patted Enzo's back shaking his head and laughing at Caroline. The Brit shrugged. "Can't blame a bloke for trying?" he said trying not to die of embarrassment.

After Caroline's laughter died down, she wiped the tears from her face and hugged a slightly grumpy Enzo. "_Bloke?" _she said turning into another fit of laughter "Come on. You know I love you" she said trying to cheer him up.

"But you love teasing people _more"_ he added with a slight smirk. "Damon was right. You are a devil" he said, earning a sharp glare from the blonde.

She snorted unbelievingly. "Damon's a dick" she grumbled crossing her arms over her chest thinking of the older Salvatore. "Now I have to tell you guys something- she started but was cut off by the shrill scream of her roommate.

She instantly stood up and walked to her friend's bedroom while Stefan and Enzo rolled their eyes. "Are you okay?" she asked entering the room after knocking.

Much to her surprise, Rebekah and her _hunk _both were there. But this time her friend was at least clothed. Somewhat. In a robe. She was pacing the room. "Caroline, I need your help or I am going to be killed today" She exaggerated and gave her friend a pleading look. The poor girl looked scared out of her mind.

"What's wrong Rebekah?" she asked concerned to see her confident friend turn into this … _mess. _"Just calm down and tell me" she added sitting on one chair trying to ignore the waist up naked man in her friend's bed.

"It's my brother Nik" she said frantically searching the room for some jeans. "He's coming here. I'm in so much trouble" she said hyperventilating again.

"So your brother's coming. It's a good thing isn't it?" she asked trying to find the problem. "From what you've told me he loves you the most" she added remembering how fondly she talked about her brother Nick.

"Yes he does which is why he won't appreciate _him _here" Rebekah argued pointing towards the guy in her bed. "Nik's downstairs so I can't send him away now" she panicked.

"Relax Rebekah" Caroline said rolling her eyes at her friend's exaggerated panic. "You're an adult. Free to do as you wish. What's the worse he'll do? Not talk to you or complain to your dad about it?" she asked chuckling as she shook her head.

"No. The flat we're living in is in _his _name so he'll probably kick me out and have all my assets frozen till I get _normal_" she hissed at the other blonde. Caroline's eyes widened. Shit! She forgot that while she had paid some part in the apartment, the majority came from Rebekah and so she was the one who had insisted that it stayed in her name. Obviously she hadn't expected her brother to have paid for her. _Typical. _

On cue the doorbell rang making both blondes flinch. Rebekah started pacing again like a mad woman while the guy in her bed looked around the room for his clothes.

The doorbell rang again. "I'll get it" Stefan's voice came.

"NO! I've got it" Caroline called out quickly and jumped to her feet. She turned to Rebekah. "Make yourself presentable" she said gesturing to her hair and clothes. Or lack of clothes. She turned to the guy wearing his jeans and looking around the room for his shirt most probably. "You. You're not her boyfriend or one night stand or _anything_" she hissed. "You were just here to deliver the food. Now go" she said pointing her finger towards the door.

He looked down and frowned before picking up his shirt or what was left of it. "If I go down shirtless, do you think they'll notice?" he asked showing her his shredded shirt. Caroline turned and glared Rebekah who shrugged apologetically.

"Fine. Wait here" she said before running out into the living room to see Enzo sitting there. "I need your shirt" she said suddenly causing him to smirk and look up from his phone.

"I'm not falling for that again" he said with a cunning smile.

Caroline groaned. "I swear Enzo. This is not the time" she huffed out. "Just take off your damn shirt and give it to me" she demanded holding out her hand.

Enzo smirked, shaking his head. "The things I do for you gorgeous" he said pulling his shirt over his head and passing it to Caroline.

Stefan entered the room holding the cartons of their Chinese takeout. "Whoa! Guys" he said shielding his eyes. "Not the place" he commented.

Caroline rolled her eyes. "Stop being such a virgin Stefan" she retorted before running into Rebekah's room and throwing the shirt at the guy's face. "Get dressed and leave" she told him.

He nodded a little embarrassed and tugged the shirt over his head before walking over to the door. The bell rang again. "Care will you open it?" Stefan groaned looking a bit confused at the scene in front of him.

Caroline ran to the front door and nodded. "Just a minute" she called out. She looked around the apartment to see if everything was in place. "Okay" she breathed out and opened the door with a smile on her face.

Rebekah's poor one night stand practically ran out of the door but her smile slowly slipped as she saw the man Niklaus standing at her doorstep with a smirk on his face. There was also a brunette standing behind him.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "Um… what are _you_ doing here?" she asked angrily.

Niklaus chuckled at that. "What no hello, it's nice to see you?" he taunted. "I'm here to see my sister. Rebekah" he elaborated after a while.

"You're Nick!?" she blurted out suddenly disgusted. Rebekah had made her brother Nick sound like an angel sent from heaven above and this guy Niklaus was nowhere near an angel.

He smiled at her. "That is what Rebekah calls me" he said shrugging. "Now aren't you going to invite me in love?" he asked playfully. Caroline opened the door wide and let them both in after stepping out of their way.

"You can wait for her. She's just getting out of the shower" Caroline said lamely and gestured for Stefan and Enzo to get out of the living room. Obviously luck was never on her side. Klaus raised his eyebrows in question when he saw the two lounging so casually in his sister's living room. One of them being shirtless.

"Mr. Mikaelson" Stefan said immediately recognizing the man and stood up brushing his jeans. "What are you doing here?" he asked politely as they shook hands.

"I remember you. Stefan… Salvatore if I'm correct?" Klaus asked vaguely remembering the guy. He had seen him last year or the year before that. He couldn't point out when exactly. "Well, I'm here to meet my baby sister" he said with a chuckle before turning to glare Enzo. "I'm assuming you're another one of her hopeless flings?" he said showing his disgust.

Before he could answer, however, Caroline quickly spoke up in both her friends' defense. "Actually this is Enzo, _my _boyfriend!" she ejaculated, trying to cover for her best friend. Stefan immediately stifled his laughter seeing the smirk on Enzo's face as he draped his arm over Caroline's shoulder giving her shoulder a squeeze.

"I see" Klaus said. His lips set in a hard, thin line. He stretched out his hand for Enzo to take. "Klaus Mikaelson" he offered with a slight nod. Enzo shook his hand and they both stared at each other, while Caroline shifted from foot to foot in uneasiness.

Katherine's cough broke the tense environment. "This is Kate- he stopped short when he saw her nostrils flaring. "Katherine" he corrected himself. "My brother's girlfriend and my _assistant_" he added for his own amusement.

"Babysitter" she corrected with a smirk and stepped forward. Caroline politely shook her hand trying to ignore the accessing look the brunette was giving her.

"Why don't you guys sit? Caroline can check on Bekah- I mean Rebekah" Stefan said correcting himself. Caroline nodded fervently. "Yeah. I'll go do that" she said lamely earning an amused look from Klaus which she ignored. Or tried to.

As she entered her roommate's room, she started banging on the bathroom door. "Open this door Rebekah Mikaelson" she said and then she realized. She was such an idiot. Rebekah _Mikaelson! _Like the daughter of Mikael Mikaelson and the sister of Niklaus Mikaelson. How did she never notice? Maybe she, herself, was the reason blondes were so humiliated for their lack of intellect.

"Give me five minutes" her muffled voice came out.

Caroline gritted her teeth as she clenched her fists. The things she did for her friend. She made her way out to the living room and gave everyone a small smile. "She said five minutes" she excused and sat next to Enzo.

"So you're Rebekah's roommate?" Katherine asked turning her attention to Caroline.

"Yeah. We've been friends for a while now" she answered remembering how their friendship was practically _hate _at first sight but eventually they both had found that they had too much in common and were quite alike. "We've been friends since high school" she added remembering their competitive stance towards each other.

"Funny she's never mentioned you before" the brunette commented examining her nails.

Caroline raised her eyebrows at the brunette's jab. "She hasn't mentioned you either" she retorted crossing her arms over her chest.

"Oh." Katherine looked up slightly impressed by the blonde's comeback. "And why is _your _boyfriend naked in the living room? Or is it just routine for blondes?" she jabbed sarcastically.

Klaus looked between the two as they exchanged retorts and Caroline kept answering back Katherine. It was refreshing. There were few girls who could stand up to Katherine and even his sister had, at one point, cried because of Katherine's smart mouth. But the fire in Caroline's eyes impressed him.

Stefan and Enzo kept glancing between the girls amused by the catfight going on. One hell of an interesting lunch.

"Oh it's just something _normal _couples do. You wouldn't know" she said with a fake sweet smile. "I mean when your boyfriend isn't even here to spend the month of _February_ with you?" she attacked knowing it would hurt the brunette. The month of Valentines was for couples and every girl had the desire to be with her loved one.

Katherine glared the blonde but before she could say any more Rebekah came rushing in. "Hello Nik" she said with a sickening sweet smile. "Katherine" she sneered. Good. At least Rebekah hated her too.

Klaus stood up and kissed his sister's cheek. "Took you long enough" he whispered softly. "Now if you're quite ready can we leave?" he asked. "I have a reservation for us at the restaurant just a couple of blocks away. You should all join us" Klaus offered looking towards Caroline mainly. He hoped she would say yes because he truly wanted to spend time with her.

Of course, she denied. "No!" both the blondes exclaimed at the same time. All eyes turned to Rebekah except Klaus' who were stuck on Caroline.

"I mean Caroline has to study. She hasn't had the time to study for our finals" Rebekah lied and Caroline sighed in relief that she didn't have to lie because she was an even worst liar than Rebekah.

Klaus smirked playfully. "And you've studied?" he asked amused.

Rebekah glared him. He held his hands up before turning to Stefan. "How about you Stefan? Would you like to join us?" he asked politely.

"He has to help Caroline study!" Rebekah blurted out, not wanting _anyone _to witness her family's madness.

Klaus turned fully to Rebekah and behind him, Caroline gave Rebekah a look that screamed '_Seriously!' _"I think they can speak for themselves Rebekah love" Klaus said a little irritated by her interruptions. Even he could sense something was wrong and Rebekah was imposing her will onto her friends.

"Rebekah's right. We do have to study" Enzo spoke up after staying quiet during the whole interaction and it made things a little awkward because he was half naked and had Caroline tucked into his side possessively. He _really_ was milking this fake girlfriend boyfriend thing. "Maybe some other time Mr. Mikaelson" he added trying to be polite but the hostility in his tone and eyes for the blonde man was clear.

"Of course" Klaus responded gently but his tone too was taunting and knowing. He turned towards Stefan and shook his hand. "It's been an honor to meet you Mr. Mikaelson" Stefan gushed like a little fan girl.

"Likewise" he said before turning to Caroline. He brought her hand up to his lips and pressed a lingering kiss on the back of her back, all the while looking straight into her eyes. "It's been a pleasure to meet you Caroline" he said and the way her name rolled of his tongue, Caroline practically melted.

"Goodbye" she said as she walked them to the door. Just as the Mikaelson clan exited the apartment, Caroline turned back and closed the door. The first thing in her view was Enzo's damn Cheshire smile.

"Well, gorgeous, I say you owe me" he gloated as he flopped down on the sofa. "Big time" he added for effect as he picked up his food container and started digging in.

Stefan nodded. "Yeah Caroline, I hate to say this but Enzo's right" Stefan backed him up knowing it would tick Caroline in the wrong way. "And what was this all about anyway?" he asked crossing his arms over his chest. "Klaus _remembered _you" he commented impressed.

Caroline groaned and sat down between Stefan and Enzo and picked at her own food. "Traitor" she murmured under her breath.

"Caroline"

"Alright fine!" she said putting her food down and turning to face Stefan. "I bumped into him after you dropped me off. We exchanged a few _words. _Mainly him being an asshole and dropping _tea _on me and then trying to buy me off with lunch but I refused" she told him, proud of herself.

"You refused?" he asked unsure if he had heard his best friend just say that. "You refused Klaus Mikaelson when he asked you for lunch?" he clarified.

"What does this all have to do with my bloody shirt?" Enzo's annoying rant came through.

Caroline huffed. "Well _obviously, _I had to refuse" she said, as stating the obvious. "Besides I didn't know at that time who he was" she shrugged. "And your shirt went to Rebekah's hunk. Let's say Klaus is not very supportive of her _extracurricular activities_" Caroline informed him air quoting.

"Well, if you knew would you have changed your decision?" Stefan asked with a knowing smile.

Caroline rolled her eyes. "Of course not. So what if he's _somebody_" she stated a little annoyed. "He was an asshole and a jerk and I told him so because he deserved it" she announced confidently.

"What about my shirt? Not that I mind being naked. I mean I am extremely handsome" Enzo chirped in giving them both a grin.

"I'll buy you a new one!" Caroline offered before shaking her head. "Now let's forget this ever happened and enjoy our lunch like we were supposed to" she announced before they all fell into an easy conversation and a fit of laughter, unaware of the trouble that lied ahead of them.

While Rebekah excused herself to go to the bathroom and Katherine went away to attend a call from Elijah, Klaus found the perfect opportunity for his own phone call. He picked up his phone and dialed one of the numbers he had learnt by heart. The receiver picked up on the second ring.

"Sir?"

"Nate, I need you to run a background check" he started. His voice firm as it was with his employees.

There was silence for ten seconds. "Of course sir"

"I need complete information on Caroline Forbes. Student at NYU business school" Klaus replied as the pictures of the feisty blonde played and replayed in his mind. "Everything. From phone number to school records to her personal life" he demanded. "Don't leave anything out!" he warned.

"Of course sir" the reply came. "It'll be at your desk, first thing tomorrow morning"

He shut the phone without a second word, knowing his job would be done. He smiled as he remembered the blonde goddess' fiery behavior and knew that there was something special about her, mysterious about her and he was not resting until he found out what it was.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

_**WARNING: This story will feature extremely possessive, dominant, jealous and control-freak Klaus. **_

_**I believe we needed this after the latest TVD episode crap. **_

"I can't believe you didn't tell me about your family. We've been friends for so long Rebekah" Caroline complained as she applied her makeup in the bathroom and Rebekah selected clothes for her in the bedroom.

"Well, to be honest love, I didn't hide anything" the other blonde defended herself. "You simply couldn't figure it out" she added laughing when her friend came out of the bathroom. "A little more blush" she suggested and then turned towards the clothes. "Wear this and those black Jimmy Choo and take the beige purse this time" she instructed. "_It has place for a knife in it" _she teased lightly.

Caroline inspected the red summer mini dress. She hadn't even worn it once yet and she couldn't even remember when she'd bought it. She shrugged. It was good enough. "I don't need a knife. I'm going out with Enzo" she said laughing at her friend's joke.

"Yes. You're going out _on a date _with Enzo" Rebekah corrected scrunching up her nose in disdain lightly.

"Come on! I owe him and so do you after he saved our asses when your brother came" Caroline told her and slipped into the dress. "And no offence or anything but your brother's kind of a jerk" she said lightly.

Rebekah shrugged. "None taken. He's a jerk but he's a good looking jerk" she taunted with a small knowing smirk. "I saw how he was looking at you and how _you _were looking at him" she added knowingly.

Caroline blushed before turning towards the mirror to check if her makeup was smeared. "Yeah that's how all guys look at girls" she said trying to sound nonchalant.

The Mikaelson blonde rolled her eyes. "I can tell when you're trying to lie to me" she chirped in a singsong voice, flipping her hair over her shoulder.

Caroline sighed. "Look I don't have any interest in your brother. As far as I can tell, he's not even my type and I'm not his" she told her honestly. "And even if we were _meant for each other_, I wouldn't go for him. He's your brother" she clarified straightforwardly.

"Who do you think is _his _type?" the Mikaelson probed curious to what her best friend thought of her favorite brother. The doorbell saved Caroline from any further questioning. "I'll get it" Rebekah said before walking out of the door to the open the main door.

"Rebekah" Enzo greeted as he came inside. "Where's gorgeous?" he asked looking around for _his date. _

The blonde rolled her eyes at the stupid pet name. "She's getting ready so let me get right to the point. If one hair on her head is harmed by the end of the day, I will hunt you down and shove my Loubotins so deep down your throat that you'll be begging for mercy" she sneered at him. "Understood?" she asked with narrowed eyes.

The Brit nodded. "100%" he uttered before he looked behind her and his mouth twitched into a wide smile. "You look stunning today, love" he commented watching as Caroline rolled her eyes playfully and approached him.

"Thanks" she muttered before turning to Rebekah. "Okay we're leaving. I'll be back by…" she started and turned to Enzo who shrugged, waving his hand animatedly. "I'll text you" she reassured before grabbing her keys from the counter. "Bye" she said and took Enzo's arm as they walked out of the apartment.

Caroline smiled at him when he opened his car door for her like a gentleman and bowed dramatically. When they both got settled in and he started driving his silver Toyota Camry. "So where are we going?" she asked fiddling with the dial of the music player.

"We're going for lunch to Masa and then I have a surprise for you gorgeous" he said and winked in her direction.

Caroline rolled her eyes at him while smiling. "Thanks by the way for the other day" she said after a while. "Rebekah's brother would've killed us… well her" she pointed out but shrugged.

When they reached, they walked into the restaurant together and the hostess immediately came to them. Enzo whispered something to her and she led them to the bar. They both settled down and watched as a bald Chinese guy prepared food right behind the counter in front of them. "Sushi?" Caroline asked raising her eyebrows.

Enzo smirked and leaned in closer to her. "Let's see who can eat more" he challenged playfully.

"Be prepared to lose" Caroline countered taking off her black jacket, before they both started eating. They talked easily and freely, laughing at each other's jokes. At the end of the day, however, Enzo won the eating competition by a marginal lead. "Okay. You win" Caroline submitted clutching her stomach, from both the laughter and the overflowing food in her.

Enzo stood up and bowed like a gentleman, accepting his victory. He paid the bill before he came back to Caroline and grabbed her hand. "Let's talk a walk" he suggested.

Caroline chuckled. "I don't think _I can walk_" she said pointing towards her five inch heels. "You said you had a surprise for me?" she said excitedly.

Enzo laughed and offered his hands. "Okay let's go directly and if I win there, you're getting me ice cream" he told her seriously.

Caroline took his arm, rolling her eyes. "Done" she said determined to win the second round. "If not, you'll be buying me a new pair of heels" she confronted.

"You have yourself a deal" he said and they walked to his car again. They drove for another half an hour when they reached Enzo's surprise. Caroline got out of the car suspiciously. She almost squealed in joy when she saw the sign. '_Ice Skating' _

"Oh my God! Enzo! Ice skating!" she exclaimed excitedly, jumping up and down.

Enzo chuckled before ushering her inside. "Don't be so excited to lose yet gorgeous" he teased her.

Caroline walked inside and then looked at her clothes. "I'm not dressed for skating" she said shivering a little. Enzo smirked knowingly before pulling up a bag and showing it with his other hand.

"Which is why I told your useless best friend forever to pack something for you" he informed her and Caroline had to admit he had worked pretty sneakily. She took the bag from his hand and walked into the bathroom. "I'll get us skates" he called out behind her.

Caroline came to him, near the benches, only fifteen minutes later wearing tight blue skinny jeans under a loose grey top with a woolen oversized beanie on her head. "I'm ready" she said and sat down next to him to wear her skates.

Once she was done, they both entered the rink. Enzo started off confidently while Caroline went slowly and a little shakily. It wasn't that she hadn't done ice skating before. She had. But she was a little rustic now that she had got on the ice after months. "Already accepting defeat?" Enzo teased from a distance with his hands stuffed confidently into his pockets.

Caroline huffed and moved to him with a more confident stride. "Hardly. I'm just warming up to beat you to the dust" she answered back, circling him cautiously. "Or in our case the ice" she said before turning the blade of her skate in such a way that ice flew at his face. She laughed as she skated away from him hurriedly before he had the chance to get back at her.

Enzo chased after her for a few minutes and laughed as she twirled at the other end of the arena tauntingly. He watched her with narrowed eyes as she made teasing faces at him, poking her tongue out at him when he stood at the other end with a throng of people in between them.

With a mysterious glint in his eyes, he started chasing after her again and faster. Caroline slowly started edging towards the other side but as soon as she turned back she saw Enzo on the ice floor and not moving. Her eyes widened and she ran to him. Pushing past the throng of people, she went to him. She poked him lightly and then nudged his side with her foot. "Enzo!" she called out to him. "What happened?" she asked looking around at the children and the few adults that had gathered.

"I think he hit his head" someone's voice came.

Just as Caroline was about to turn, _Enzo _grabbed her hand and pulled her down to him. Caroline squealed as she slipped and fell on top of him. Everyone around them laughed and then resumed their own activities. Caroline groaned loudly and hit him on his chest with her fist. "You jerk!" she hissed at him playfully.

"I thought you were dead or something" she joked, sitting up on him.

Enzo burst into amusement. "Who dies by slipping in an ice rink Caroline?" he asked laughing loudly.

Caroline jumped on him poking her tongue at him. "Maybe you should have" she threw at him flipping her hair over her shoulder angrily before trying to stand up again but slipping again and falling on Enzo. _Again. _"Ugh!" she exclaimed in frustration and sat on the floor, ignoring the laughs of the children who were pointing their gloved fingers at the pair.

"Don't be a sore loser now" Enzo teased breathlessly as he lay on the cold floor without a care in the world.

Caroline tried to ignore him and the bubbling laughter she felt at his teasing and at their situation but it failed as soon as Enzo started laughing again. She smiled and then it turned into full ledge laughter. They both snorted happily ignoring the way the parents of those children stared at them.

Enzo was the first to stand up and then offer his hand to Caroline who accepted it easily. They both stood up shakily and Caroline grabbed onto Enzo's arms to steady herself and automatically, he wrapped his arms around her waist. Caroline looked up at him through her lashes and Enzo looked down at her through hooded eyes. His eyes darted to her lips and Caroline unconsciously wet her lips. She couldn't deny that she was attracted to Enzo and they had great chemistry but she had never taken him up on his offer not to ruin their friendship.

Enzo leaned in closer to her and Caroline closed her eyes in anticipation. The moment Enzo's lips made contact with her, all logic flew out of the window and she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him fervently. He, in response, pulled her closer and invaded her parted lips with his tongue, exploring her mouth. They both tasted each other before breaking apart, gasping for breath.

They both rested their foreheads together, trying to get their breathing under control. "One of us should probably say something right now" Caroline whispered quietly.

"Go ahead" Enzo joked.

"_Not that_" Caroline chuckled softly.

Klaus sat at the head chair, gazing at the projector in front of him, uninterestedly. He couldn't focus on anything. Well, he hardly needed to. He was just sitting through to observe some newbie recruits, Elijah had forced him to hire, saying that the company needed fresh minds and what not.

He gazed at the screen of his phone again, waiting for any update from his PI. He was itching to know more about _her. _She had stolen all of his attention, focus and control. He could hardly do anything without her image getting into his mind. He had gone through the initial information he had gotten about her within just two hours. But he wanted _more. _

He wanted to know every single detail of her life. Everything about her. Who she liked, who she disliked. Her past, her present and her future. He wanted everything.

He was surprised to know that she was also the editor of the university magazine. It pleased him to no end to know that _she _would be the one interviewing him for this year's magazine interview. At first, his intention was _not _to do the interview but when he found out, _she _was the interviewer he had been pleased.

But still, something was bugging him. Or rather _someone. _That Enzo guy was just rubbing him in the wrong way. He was already enraged by the number of frequent visits that guy had in his sister and Caroline's apartment. If there was one thing Klaus Mikaelson didn't like, it was sharing.

And he had absolutely no intention of sharing _his _Caroline.

He almost growled impatiently as the meeting stretched on and he got no response from Mark. "That's it for today" Elijah announced loudly, seeing his brother close to the edge and there were collective sighs of relief to be heard. No one liked being in the presence of an aggravated Klaus which resulted in an ultimate lash out.

"Niklaus, is everything alright? You've been preoccupied all morning" the elder Mikaelson probed fixing his tie.

Klaus stood up from his chair and dialed the number of his investigator. "Nothing that concerns you brother" he replied curtly. "Excuse me" he bit out and Elijah left nodding. The phone was picked up on the second bell. "I hope you've found me something Mark" he sneered.

Mark, his PI, coughed awkwardly. "Yes sir" he answered ambiguously.

"Where is she?" he asked sternly.

"She's occupied sir_" _

"Occupied where?" he growled again.

"She's on a date with Enzo" Mark's uncomfortable voice came through.

The line went silent for a couple of minutes. Both of them saying nothing. Klaus thinking while Mark anticipating.

"Alright. Keep me posted" Klaus answered after a beat. "Keep an eye on her"

"Will do sir" and then the line went dead again.

Klaus was seething. So she was actually seeing that good-for-nothing boy. At first he had been hopeful that it would be just some sort of drama by the college girls but he was proven wrong. They were seeing each other and he didn't like it one bit.

Klaus marched out of the conference room and saw everyone scattering into the wind to avoid his wrath. Klaus Mikaelson was never really happy with anyone. He walked to his brother's office and barged in without as much as a knock. "I'm off to Rebekah's. Stay here and handle everything" he informed him and walked out.

Once he reached the elevators, he impatiently tapped his foot as the elevator went down from the top floor to the ground floor. As soon as the elevator stopped and the ding sound was made, he shot out and walked towards the reception. "Give the deadline to NYU for the interview" he told her in his business tone.

The young girl, Olivia jumped at his sudden appearance. "Of course sir" she stuttered and then scrambled around her desk trying to collect papers. She held a document up for his inspection. "B-but sir, it says they still have three months for the interview" she explained to him.

Klaus pinched the bridge of his nose. Did this girl want to lose her job? Didn't she know the deadline was whenever Klaus Mikaelson wanted it to be? "I. Said. The. Deadline. Ends. In. A. Few. Days." He said out loud slowly and angrily. The girl shook and nodded.

He didn't wait for another one of her excuses this time and walked to the exit/entrance of the building. The doorman immediately opened the door for him and called the driver around through the intercom.

As soon as Klaus went to the sidewalk, the driver rushed out of the car and opened the door for him, bowing his head. "Good day sir" he said shortly, tipping his hat lightly.

Klaus nodded back. "Take me to Rebekah's." he ordered him and sat into the car. The driver immediately got in too and started driving. They got to their destination in record time and before they even knew it Klaus was walking into his baby sister's apartment.

Rebekah opened the door, frustrated by the constant ringing of the bell and knocking. She opened the door so harshly, it almost ripped out of its hinges. "Who the bloody- Nik?" She started but softened seeing her brother. "What are you doing here?" she asked crossing her arms over her chest.

Klaus rolled his eyes at her. He had to admit she did have the right to be angry. She looked like a mess. She was probably studying. He walked straight in and walked towards the kitchenette. "Do come in brother" Rebekah muttered sarcastically, closing the door behind her.

"Where's Caroline?" he asked right away, searching the refrigerator for some sort of alcohol. _Anything at this point. _

The blonde narrowed her eyes at her brother. "She's not home" she answered vaguely.

"I didn't ask if she was home" he countered. "Tell me where she is Rebekah. I am in no mood for games" he hissed, taking out a bottle of red wine stored in the lower compartment. He quickly opened the bottle ignoring his sister's protest.

"That's mine" she pouted. When Klaus made her a stern look, she sighed. "She's gone out with Enzo" she answered with a little satisfaction that her brother was burning inside. And it was not because of the alcohol. "Why do you ask?" she questioned innocently pouring herself some wine in a flute. '_Might as well have some'_ she thought shrugging.

Klaus was silent for a moment, deep in thought. "I need you to put in a good word for me with Caroline" he told her with all seriousness.

Rebekah choked on the wine in her mouth and almost spit it out. "What?" she asked as if she'd heard wrong. "You want me to what?" she asked again, her eyes going wide.

Klaus rolled his eyes. "Stop being so dramatic. You heard what I said" he said.

"You do realize I just told you she's gone out _on a date _with her _boyfriend_ Enzo" the blonde clarified, knowing that Caroline and Enzo would've post probably gotten their act together by now.

"Yes which is why we need to do our parts faster" he added urgently gulping down all of his liquor in one gulp.

Rebekah grabbed the bottle to stop him from reaching for it again. "This is not a joke Nik." She told him narrowing her eyes at him.

"You're hardly one to talk" he hissed at her snatching the bottle from her hands. "Now just do as you're told" he warned her.

"For you two to be _together _and for me to actually put in a good word for you, she first needs to be available. Which she is _not_!" Rebekah defended, still in shock. What was happening right now?

Klaus smirked, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. "That's my job to do. You just tell her of all my _unbelievably astounding _qualities" he gloated playfully.

"You mean, your unbelievable arrogance" she sneered at him. "Incidentally, she already thinks you're a jerk" she said flipping her hair over her shoulder.

Klaus shrugged. He had been expecting that. "Well, it's your job to change that" he told her.

"And why would I do that?" She countered crossing her arms over her chest with a smirk on her face.

Klaus gave her a cold smile that sent chills down her spine. "So that I let you continue on with your little trysts and that I don't tell father of what you've been up to" he threatened her knowingly. "So that I don't expose you and so that you can keep your trust fund from being frozen" he continued. "You will help me baby sister. It's only a matter of how" he told her softly.

The smirk from her face slipped and she scowled at him. "You stop hovering over and trying to control me. I'll gladly put in a good word for you with Caroline" she offered and at that moment she knew she was trading her best friend for her happiness but she couldn't help it. She had longed for freedom and she was finally getting it. Even though, she was deeming herself selfish in the process.

"You've got yourself a deal little sister" he taunted before smirking and heading for the door. He only stopped when he heard his sister's voice again.

"I hope you're not planning to hurt her" she feared sincerely.

Klaus didn't respond and walked out of the apartment and back into his awaiting car. He picked out his cellphone and called someone. The call was answered on the third bell. "Klaus Mikaelson! To what do I owe the pleasure?"

Klaus smiled. "Marcellus! It's wonderful to hear from you too" he said pleasantly. "Tell me something. You are still recruiting students slash interns right?" he asked knowingly.

"Yeah I am. Why? Do you have someone in mind?" the dark skinned man asked from the other side of the line.

"Actually I do. Bright student. He'll settle well in New Orleans" he said out loud. "Thought he'd be a great asset to your company" he added cleverly.

"Political science major?" Marcel asked curiously.

Klaus loosened his tie knot. "No. Business major" he said grinning like a wolf, knowing there was no way Marcel would turn down to scoop out a business major. "Enzo I believe is his name" he told him. "Same batch as Rebekah's. Just met him a few days ago. Bright lad" he commented baiting his friend.

"I will look into it. Anything we should or should not offer him?" Marcel asked carefully, not knowing why Klaus was being so considerate. But he knew he couldn't pass up the opportunity to pick up some business students for the business school of New Orleans and his _own firm_.

Klaus shrugged, visibly more relaxed now. "I would offer him the best I have of course. A promising student as him does deserve only the best" he told him. He heard Marcel mumbling something to his secretary on the other end of the line. He smirked. Everything was just so easy for him. "_However_" he added raising suspicion. "You might want to hurry. I heard he's getting quite the transfer options" Klaus lied smoothly. The earlier Enzo was out of New York, the better it would be for him and Caroline.

"I'll get right to it" Marcel replied from the other side. "Thanks" he said shortly before the line went dead.

He tapped a few times on the screen of his phone again before holding it to his ear. The line was picked up on the third ring. "What the bloody hell do you want now?" Rebekah's angry voice came through.

Klaus smiled tightly, realizing he had successfully pissed off his baby sister. "I'll be over at your place for breakfast tomorrow morning- he started but he wasn't allowed to finish.

"Of course Nik! Why don't you come and stay here? I'll move out so that you can spy more easily on my roommate!" she hissed at him angrily. "You know this is obsessive behavior you should be discussing with a shrink" she taunted.

He chuckled throatily. "Keep testing my limits Bekah and one of these days I'll be forced to show father around your campus" he teased, knowing he would never do it but she didn't have to know that. Now did she?

"Yeah just stick a dagger in my back. Will you?" she sneered sarcastically and then the line went dead.

True to his word, Klaus came for breakfast at his sister's apartment at eight thirty in the morning. He was surprised to see Rebekah up and about, ready for her college classes. He had thought today would be another day Caroline would have to handle the hassle for her behalf. But the other blonde was nowhere in sight which irked him greatly.

"Is Caroline not joining us today?" he asked casually sipping the tea his sister had so _kindly _prepared for him.

Rebekah just rolled her eyes. "She's sleeping Nik" she told him like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Wake her up then" he countered clenching his fists. He didn't know why or how but he felt the need to be in her company. To be with her. "Tell her your favorite big brother is here and you'd like for us all to have breakfast together" he completed with a sarcastic smile.

"You mean I should lie?" Rebekah asked dramatically giving him a wide eyed look.

Klaus rolled his eyes this time. "Doesn't she have class to attend?" he asked pointedly.

"She does. She just doesn't have the obligation to go to every single one of them because her older brother is a psychopathic lurker" she replied snootily. "I'm going to brush my teeth and then you can drop me to campus on your way" she ordered and walked away without waiting for a reply.

Klaus stood up and walked around the apartment, absorbing everything. The house seemed cozy and warm like a genuine house. It made him smile. Rebekah had always wanted a house like this. He walked over to the feature wall of the living room and saw the pictures on it. Pictures of his baby sister and Caroline and then of them independently. He stopped at the picture of Caroline in a red cheering uniform. He remembered a picture of Rebekah in the same uniform. Although he couldn't remember much of her life from that time period because he was always very busy with work then.

He traced his finger over Caroline's form in the picture in which she was smiling at the camera with her pompoms in her hands. She looked so young, beautiful and her eyes and smile shone bright like the Sun…

Suddenly the doorbell rang and he turned around. He knew that Rebekah was still in the bathroom and it would take her some time to come out so he went to the door himself. Besides, who was at his sister's apartment in the morning?

He opened the door, half expecting so see Stefan because he had come to know that he usually gave Caroline the ride to campus. Maybe she hadn't notified him that she wasn't going. But his eyes widened and his eyebrows shot up in surprise when he saw Caroline standing at the other end of the door, looking like she'd been back from one hell of a party.

"I'm sorry Bekah. I forgot my- she started but stopped rambling when she realized it was not _Bekah. _But _Bekah's_ brother. "Klaus. Um, hi" she said confused and red-faced. "I didn't know you were coming over" she said as she stood awkwardly at the door frame of her own apartment with her black Jimmy Choos in her hand and only her red dress and Enzo's jacket around her shoulders. Last night had been a wild night for both of them and most of her clothes hadn't made it past the first two hours of reaching his bachelor pad.

Klaus' gaze hardened when he gazed over her form. The little red dress she wore hardly covered anything. But what irked him the most was the bloody men's jacket draped over her shoulders. He wasn't gullible enough _not_ to understand what her appearance was screaming. "Hello to you too sweetheart. Looks like you've had quite the night" he commented as he moved aside slightly, giving her just enough space to squeeze in between him and the door frame to walk through. And she did.

Awkwardly though.

"Yeah. I was just… um…" she trailed off, blushing crimson, not knowing how to hide her current –_after-crazy-continuous-all-night-long-hot-sex-_

Klaus let out a dry chuckle at her obvious discomfort and eyed the way the dress hugged her every curve. "Night out?" he questioned lightly but only he knew the amount of restraint it required to keep himself from sounding jealous or even effected.

Caroline frowned. Why was he questioning her like that? "Something like that" she mumbled vaguely. "I thought you would head back. I mean Rebekah told me you preferred living in London" she said conversation sake.

Klaus shrugged but internally he was pleased that she had been talking about him. The thought also made him uneasy that she probably knew a lot of stuff about him. It made him feel out of control. "I do prefer London but someone has to look over here too" he said and looked at her again. He clenched his fists tight when he saw her hair falling over her face. How his fingers itched to remove it from her face and gently tuck it behind her ear? "I also have some obligations to fulfill with your university" he told her and Caroline nodded, remembering the interview she still had to take from him.

"Thanks for the interview, by the way" she said and tucked her hair behind her ear, unaware that her best friend's brother was watching her every move like a hawk. "It'll be a great tick for my resume. Interviewing you, I mean. Even though it's just for the school magazine" she chuckled slightly.

"I'm glad to help you sweetheart" he answered as a small smile played his lips.

"When are you free?" she asked suddenly. Klaus raised an eyebrow at the innuendo in the question. "I mean for the interview. I got a message that the deadline's set for a few days from now" she explained, nervously shifting from one foot to the other. God! The way his gaze roamed over her was… weird. Unusual. It had a certain level of lust, appreciation, adoration and _possession. _His scrutiny was predatory. Like she was the prey, a lamb and he was a wolf.

"I'll make sure my secretary calls you when my schedule's clear" he told her confidently, loving the way a light pink blush was creeping over the skin of her cheeks. "And the deadline would be no issue for you _love_. You can _interview _me whenever you want" he answered smoothly with a smirk.

Caroline nodded with a small smile. "Well, it was great to meet you again. Have a nice day" she muttered uncomfortably and walked away from him into Rebekah's room.

As soon as she got into the room, she leaned against the closed door and breathed out. "I thought I- Rebekah came out applying gloss to her lips but stopped short when she saw her best friend in her room and not her brother.

She opened her mouth to say something when she saw her friend's condition. "You had sex didn't you?" she questioned bluntly with a cunning smile. "You two finally did it" she said patting herself on the back for her accurate assumption.

The other blonde just shook her head but smiling as she did so. "I'm going to sleep. By the way, thanks for the heads up" she muttered sarcastically. "I met your brother" she explained at watching her friend's confused face. "Yeah. Anyways, I'm off. Have a good day" she said and walked out of the room to her own.

Rebekah gulped unintentionally and picked up her bag, knowing that she had to face her brother now. Klaus, of course, didn't say anything to her until they were in his car. "She was sleeping wasn't she?" he asked grimly.

"Stop being so controlling Nik" she complained pouting. "Besides it wasn't a lie. She was just sleeping in Enzo's bed" she mocked with a smirk of her own.

Klaus clenched his fists and squared his jaw but said nothing. After a few minutes of silence, he turned to his baby sister. "Doesn't your building have a curfew?" he asked casually. But his question was tense and important.

Rebekah shrugged. "It's not like we're in kindergarten Nik" she told him rolling her eyes. "We're all adults here" she reasoned but her attention was focused only on her cellphone.

'Seems I have to fix that' he thought smugly as he brought out his phone and texted just the person to get the job done. Having Caroline to himself was going to work out better in his favor than he ever thought. It was also going to keep his baby sister close to him.

Two targets shot down with one arrow.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

_**WARNING: This story will feature extremely possessive, dominant, jealous and control-freak Klaus.**_

"John. Hi!" Caroline greeted, with a smile, as she opened the door. "Come in" she gestured towards the living room giving the guy space to move inside. John Gilbert had been in the board of directors for the building she lived in for years now. He was basically the reason Caroline and Rebekah had gotten the apartment in the first place. Elena Gilbert, John's niece was Caroline's childhood friend and had asked her uncle to grant both the blondes a favor by giving them the luxurious apartment in the building which was only for married couples or families.

The guy sat down in the living room. "Hello Caroline. Nice to see you again" he greeted back kindly and looked around the apartment. "Seems like you girls have made this place home" he said with a smile. "Where's Rebekah?" he asked randomly.

"She's studying inside. Finals are just right around the corner" she said and walked into the open kitchenette. "Do you want some tea, coffee or juice?" she asked opening the cabinet door.

"Just water" he told her.

Caroline filled the glass with water and handed it to him, sitting on the chair opposite to him. "How's Isobel?" she asked conversation sake. "How far along is the baby?" she asked again remembering the man's pregnant wife. She could still remember how excited Elena had been when she had found out.

"They're fine. We're at the seventh month" he answered smoothly and drank the water in one gulp before placing the glass on the table. "Actually I came here to give you something" he told her and reached into the inner pocket of his jacket and took out a letter. "Here you go. This is the new policy letter" he informed her and handed her the letter.

Caroline frowned as she opened it and read it. "You're changing curfew timings?!" she asked alarmed. How were they going to go to parties and stuff when _this _was going to happen? "Why?" she asked deflated.

"There's been complaints and a couple of other board members wanted it to happen seeing as this is a _family apartment_" he told her with a knowing smile. "Secondly, it's part of the whole security upgrade. We recently got our funding so security is the place we needed to spend it" he said shrugging and stood up. "Now inform Rebekah about this as well. I want you both to respect the rules. Especially since you're already living here on my word" he warned her seriously.

Caroline nodded. "Yeah. I'll tell her. This won't be a problem" she said sadly looking down at the _stupid_ piece of paper again. "Contrary to what you think, we _do _appreciate your help" she teased lightly.

"I'm sure you girls do" he retorted back before walking to the door. "Take care" he said as Caroline opened the door for him.

"Give my best to Isobel and Elena" she called out as he walked away. The blonde slammed the door shut and stomped her foot, petulantly. "Rebekah!" she whined loudly, glancing at the letter in her hand again.

After reassuring Caroline that their social life would not be over just by the likes of a curfew, Rebekah had finally managed to send the blonde off. She knew exactly who was responsible for this sudden _'policy change'. _Her bastard brother.

She was going to give him her choice of words and it was good that Caroline was gone to visit Stefan, not to bear witness.

"Mr. Mikaelson's office. How may I help you?" came his boring secretary's voice as she dialed his phone.

"Where's my brother?" she asked straight forward, feeling no need to introduce herself.

There was silence on the other end for a minute or two before the girl spoke up. "I'm sorry. Mr. Mikaelson is busy in a meeting. Would you like to leave a message?"

Rebekah sighed angrily. "I know he's not in a meeting and is probably trying to avoid me after the cheap trick he just pulled so tell him I said that he can rot in hell for all I care" she hissed furiously into the phone, imagining her brother's face here instead. "Tell him that he has no right to interfere into the life that I have built for myself. Tell him he needs to find a new hobby!" she yelled into the speaker, throwing all her accusations at him before slamming the phone shut.

She breathed heavily and ran a hand through her hair, trying to calm herself. She was not going to let her brother jump into her life and ruin it after she had done so much to make it here on her own. Well, not exactly on her own. She had used her family's money but she had never had their support or love.

Shimmering down from anger, she realized that she had just left such an angry message for her brother. The brother who probably had the power to take away _everything _from her. He just had to say one word to their mother and she would be back into their family home with a million restrictions on her.

Jumping at the sound of her cellphone ringing, she answered it with a scrunch of her nose. "What?" she snapped angrily.

"I would suggest that you watch your tone Rebekah" her brother's warning voice came through the line. She was surprised by how quickly he had gotten the message. "I believe you had something to say. Say it to me right now" he told her, almost as if daring her to complain to him.

Rebekah bit her tongue, knowing he was baiting her. "I'm not twelve Nik. I don't need a curfew" she argued, pouting.

She heard him laughing on the other end. "On the contrary, love" he started slowly, as if talking to a little child. "You do and so does Caroline" he answered smugly and that is when Rebekah understood the whole ordeal.

"Don't tell me you're doing all this because Caroline was out with Enzo!?" she screeched into the phone. "This obsession of yours is severely unhealthy Nik" she taunted with a slight smirk.

"She wasn't just _out with_ him. Was she?" he pointed out grimly. "You both might not be twelve but you're still young and don't have the sense of right or wrong yet" he stated in a very authoritative manner. But Rebekah was used to this voice. It was the voice he used when he was Niklaus Mikaelson not her brother Nik.

"And who are you to decide that?" she questioned curious as to what her brother's intentions _exactly _were. "Her father?" she mocked.

She didn't expect a throaty laugh in return. "Of course not! No father would _ever_ dream of doing the things I'm imagining to do to her" he retorted back and even though Rebekah couldn't see him, she could _feel _him smirking.

"God you're disgusting Nik!" she said in revulsion, trying not to vomit. "Can't you just leave my roommate alone and find some other woman to be your play toy?" she bit back sarcastically. Regardless of what her family thought, Rebekah could make friends and even dear ones like Caroline. And she was just not willing to sell out her best friend so easily.

She heard him sigh in annoyance. "Just do as you're told. While I appreciate your concern for Caroline, I don't quite like your interference in my personal life" he replied to her coldly.

"Neither do I" she sneered.

"And I have promised to stay out of it, if you help me" he reminded her and Rebekah hated herself more than her brother in that moment.

"Fine" she relented, rolling her eyes. "I told you I can't do anything as long as she's with Enzo" she told him honestly.

"He's been dealt with. I'll tell you what you have to do next and when" he replied with a confident smirk. "Have a good day dear _sister_" he said before the line went dead.

Caroline sat there and rubbed her hands together, nervously. She had spent the last hour absorbing everything Enzo had told her. He was leaving. In a few days.

It was like Mother Nature had a personal problem with her. For more than a year, Caroline had successfully avoided Enzo and his advances in the risk that it would ruin their good friendship if the relationship didn't work out. And now when she had _finally _taken the chance to try, he was moving away.

Why was life so cruel to her?

She didn't know whether to be sad that she was going to lose her friend or to be sad that she was going to lose her _potential boyfriend? _

"By your silence, I take it you're not very happy" Enzo's voice pulled her out of her reverie. She gave him a weak smile in return.

"Sorry. I was just thinking" she said meekly. Why was her love life such a mess? "Of course! I'm very happy for you Enzo. It's a great opportunity" she added with a smile. "Congratulations" she commended lightly.

Enzo smirked. "Thank you" he said and rubbed his neck awkwardly before grabbing both her hands in his own. He sighed. "Caroline. I've been waiting for an opportunity like this for years and yet it only came once I was with you" he said winking suggestively. "Come with me to New Orleans" he offered, squeezing her hands. "With your grade point average, they'll accept you in no time" he told her honestly.

Caroline shook her head and tried to control her shocked expression. "I know you've worked hard for this and you deserve this" she replied before taking her hands out of his. "But I can't just move to another city with you" she refused shaking her head. "I have a life here that I've built for myself. And you have yours" she said softly.

Enzo nodded. He had been expecting that much although there was a part of him that hoped that their friendship would have been enough for her to trust him and she would follow him out to the city of adventure. But it was clear to him that it would have been wishful thinking.

"When are you leaving?" she asked suddenly.

"Tomorrow morning" he answered straight forwardly. "I may have to come back to get my stuff but for now I'll be leaving tomorrow to check it out" he added before he pursed his lips to conceal his laughter as a thought came to his mind.

Caroline noticed that he was close to bursting into laughter. She narrowed her eyes at him. "What are you laughing at now?" she asked perplexed.

"We have the worst timing in the world" he pointed out and burst into laughter.

Caroline playfully rolled her eyes but nodded. It was true. They had _the worst timing_ ever. "So you're just going to leave?" she asked again knowing that life would be so… empty without him. He was a constant in her life and spending most of her time with him was her daily routine.

"I'm sure you'll miss me _terribly_ but we'll keep in touch" he teased cheekily with a wink. "Text that she-devil friend of yours and Stefan. I'll take you all out for lunch today" he offered before standing up and pulling her into a hug.

"I'll miss you too gorgeous" he said before dropping a kiss on top of her hair and waking towards his bedroom. "I'll be ready in a few minutes and then we'll pick up Rebekah" he suggested before he disappeared from sight.

As promised, he took them to lunch in a very nice, cozy Italian bistro. It was one of their favorite places to come to. The atmosphere throughout the lunch was not light or refreshing at all. Rather it was depressing and each minute was a constant reminder that they were not going to see each other again for a long time.

Rebekah kept throwing curious glances at Caroline and mysteriously kept texting someone. Stefan, too, kept glancing almost anxiously between both Enzo and Caroline. While the blonde in question kept poking the food on her plate. She had no appetite whatsoever. Enzo, for his part, felt awkward too but kept his face neutral.

All of them, almost, sighed with relief once lunch was over.

Rebekah and Enzo, for a change hugged each other, wishing the other the best in life. Even though they both would not even care in the slightest if the other was drowning in hot, crude oil. But it was a pleasant gesture.

Stefan's goodbye to Enzo was a brotherly hug and telling him that if he needed anything in life ever, he didn't need to think twice. Stefan sensed the need for privacy so he took Rebekah by her elbow gently and steered her away, mumbling. "We'll get the car"

Caroline hugged Enzo and he kept her in his embrace for the longest while he could. "If you ever change your mind, just give me a call" he murmured, pressing a kiss to her cheek and then to her forehead.

"I will" she said with a small smile. "I'll actually miss you Enzo" she told him honestly, pressing a kiss to his cheek. "I hope you have a good life" she mumbled clearing her throat, trying to get rid of the emotion she felt. This wretched sadness was killing her!

"See you late- Enzo stopped when he realized he was about to use his typical phrase. "Good bye gorgeous" he said instead before walking away.

After Stefan dropped both Rebekah and Caroline home, Caroline knew what he had to do. So she quickly jumped out of the car to avoid Stefan's interrogation and swiftly crept into her own apartment determined to get through the loss of her friend by doing something that would occupy her time. Something like studying. Finals were right around the corner anyway.

Before Rebekah could get out, Stefan grabbed her hand and stopped her. She looked at him quizzically. He sighed before starting. "You're going to need to keep an eye on Caroline. She's sensitive right now" he told her seriously.

Rebekah rolled her eyes. "It's not like Enzo was her boyfriend" she replied, huffing.

"She's not upset on the loss of a boyfriend. She's upset on losing Enzo, _her friend_" he replied giving her a knowing smile. "Don't be so cold. We all know you're not oblivious to your best friend's pain" he told her meaningfully.

"She'll be fine Stefan. I promise" she guaranteed and gave him a small smile. The way he squeezed her hand back, sent flutters down her stomach and she blushed slightly. "She'll probably bury herself in her books, cry into her pillow in the night and tomorrow she'll bake in the morning before her stress cleaning session" she listed off, knowing her friend's grieving process. "And _then _I'll talk to her" she said with a smirk.

"You are welcome to have lunch with me tomorrow" he offered, looking into her eyes. He then cleared his throat. "I mean she'll need her time to be alone and process this. So if you don't have any plans or anything…" he stuttered nervously, waiting for an answer.

Rebekah beamed so brightly in response that Stefan knew her answer before she spoke. "I'd love to have lunch with you" she replied back. "_To give Caroline some time alone_, of course" she added teasingly before stepping out of the car into the apartment.

True to Rebekah's prediction, Caroline had spent the rest of the day with her head in her books. Then she spent the night crying into her pillow and in the morning, the Mikaelson blonde had woken up to the lingering scent of cupcakes in the air.

Determined to let her roommate/best friend have her peace, she got ready around half twelve and came out of her room to watch Caroline still in her comfort clothes which consisted of black shorts and a baggy, _definitely _oversized red check t-shirt.

She walked closer into the kitchen and picked up a cupcake, biting into it. "These are delicious" she complimented, moaning at the taste. She was almost tempted to ditch Stefan and sit and stuff herself with the baked goods. But she knew the other blonde needed time to process everything.

"Are you going somewhere?" Caroline asked, ignoring her compliment. Her voice hoarse and rough which confirmed Rebekah's suspicions about the loud sobs muffled by the pillow.

"Yeah I have to go out for lunch. You want to come?" she offered with a small smile. Caroline shook her head. "I'll be back soon. Take care" she said and hugged Caroline for a moment too long.

Once her roommate was gone, Caroline sighed and took out the lasagna from the oven. She placed it onto the kitchen counter and looked around. There was so much mess in the kitchen and she knew if she started now, she would be able to clean it for the whole day and the time would pass quickly. She gathered all of the utensils and bowls into the sink and held the tap open.

She knew what Rebekah was doing. She had no doubt Stefan was her _important lunch date. _They always left her to her own devices when she was dealing with such an issue. It wasn't the fact that she had slept with Enzo, it was the fact that her friend Enzo was leaving. How was she supposed to deal with that?

They had all promised to stay together till the end and they had never really thought of separating and now he was going. Just like that?

She couldn't exactly blame him either. The deal he was getting in New Orleans was too good to pass up. But that fact included didn't make her feel any better.

She shook her head. She couldn't think of these things now. She needed to clean. She took off the apron and the gloves and walked into the living room. First she vacuumed the whole room after dusting it and even went as far as to clean under the couch. She scrubbed the photo frames on the wall till they were practically shining and the center table was glinting after Caroline had wiped it.

She was readjusting the pillows when she heard the doorbell go. She glanced at the clock. It was one thirty. Too early for Rebekah to be back.

She walked over to the door and opened it. What she was not expecting was definitely Rebekah's brother. "Klaus" she breathed out in shock. She looked at him. He was wearing a black suit clearly tailored to fit him like a glove, the grey tie around his neck loosened and his hair tousled like he had run his hand through it.

He gave her a lavish smirk when he saw her obvious ogling but he didn't mind. After all he was doing the same. Probably in a much _more dirty_ way. "Hello Caroline" he greeted politely and raised his eyebrow waiting for her to let him in.

"Oh sorry!" she said and quickly moved aside to give him passage to move inside. He gracefully stepped in and it was then that Caroline noticed the brown bag in his hand. "Rebekah's not home" she told him, wondering why her friend always forgot to tell her about her brother coming over.

Klaus frowned as he turned to face Caroline. "Where is she?" he asked, confused. She was the one who had suggested lunch as an ice breaker between both the siblings. He normally didn't take such long lunch breaks but for once he did and now she had clearly ditched him.

"She's gone for an 'important lunch date'" Caroline air quoted with her finger and motioned for him to have a seat. "Do you need water? Tea or coffee?" she asked, the polite hostess in her waking up.

"Lunch date?" Klaus asked, bemused, raising his eyebrow at her. "Water's fine, love" he told her, watching the movement of her legs as she walked away from him.

"Stefan and Rebekah are gone out for lunch to give me some thinking time" she said out loud and brought him a glass of water. Klaus took the glass from her and gave her a thankful nod as he waited for to elaborate. "Enzo's leaving for New Orleans tomorrow morning" she explained, biting the corner of her lip. "He got the university acceptance he was waiting for. They're giving him one hell of a package to refuse" she said and then quieted down realizing she was oversharing with _Klaus_. Klaus as in Rebekah's brother.

"Oh?" Klaus feigned surprise and shock while internally he was grinning and probably dancing over someone's grave. "Well I feel sorry for the poor lad" he said taking a gulp of water.

Caroline frowned. "Sorry for him? Why?" she asked perplexed.

"He's leaving one package to take another" he answered swiftly and even though his words were rather vulgar the meaning behind them was clear. "I would've chosen the prior" he added looking into her eyes.

Caroline almost shivered from the intensity of his gaze and looked away, blushing.

"Rebekah promised me lunch but looks like she forgot to mention that she had other plans" he told her and gave her the brown bag he had clutched in his hand. She looked inside it to see a bottle of wine. "I'm sorry to have disturbed you. I'll get going now" he said and stood up.

Caroline glanced at him and she didn't know _why_ but she felt sorry for him. He looked so tired and had apparently come for lunch all the way from his office. "You can stay if you want. I made lasagna" she offered with a small smile and pointed towards the kitchen. "You look like you could use some food inside of you right now" she muttered under her breath but apparently it was only 'under her breath' for her because Klaus laughed.

He gave her a throaty laugh. "I hardly take a lunch break, love. It was Rebekah's wish that I come all the way here" he justified himself, lightly. "Are you sure you don't mind?" he asked looking at her with narrowed eyes.

Caroline shrugged. "It's okay. I'm already used to covering up for Bekah's messes" she said sarcastically but Klaus could detect the love and affection she held for his baby sister. It made him happy and… _proud. _Both his girls getting along so well and looking out for each other.

He walked into the living room and sat down before removing his jacket and tie completely. Caroline came and placed the dish of lasagna in front of him and two flutes with the champagne bottle before strutting back into the kitchen.

Klaus' eyes followed her movement. The poor excuse of shorts she wore did nothing to hide her sexy, long legs. Did she not even realize the effect she had on him?

She came back with two different plates in hand and forks. "Sorry but all the other dishes are dirty" she said, giving him an apologetic shrug.

Klaus smiled at her as he sat down next to her but kept a respectable distance between them. "Not a problem love" he answered before serving her and then helping himself to a serving of lasagna. "Smells delicious" he commented and it truly did. Especially when he came from a family where cooking was a no-no for the majority of the women. Including his baby sister.

Caroline snorted. "You're lucky because that's the only thing I can cook" she replied shoving a mouthful into her mouth, blissfully ignorant of the way Klaus was watching her every move. She tucked her legs under herself and sat comfortably before resuming to eat.

"Tell me about yourself love" he said casually. "Have you got any family? Where are they?" he asked even though he knew everything about her himself. Except for a few missing pieces of the puzzle which he was hoping she would fill.

"Is this the '_I'm-your-roommate's-big-brother-interrogation_?'" she asked back teasingly with a smirk of her own.

Klaus chuckled at that. His girl had a good sense of humor. He liked it. But she was nowhere near the correct assumption. This wasn't the big brother interrogation. He didn't do interrogation. He simply got rid of people who stood in his path. Like Enzo. "Humor me, love" he requested with a dimpled smile.

"My mom's the sheriff of Mystic Falls and my dad is doing whatever the hell he wants" she told him and mentally rolled her eyes. They were just her family by name because emotionally they had never been there for her. It had always been Stefan and then Rebekah. Even Elena and Bonnie had been a better family to her than her own parents. "He left when I was nine" she added snidely.

"Siblings?" he asked, just for the sake of it.

"I'm an only child" she answered with a sad smile. "Though I wish I had as many siblings as Bekah!" she exclaimed sadly.

Klaus snorted at that. "If you want one, we'd be happy to lend you Kol" he offered with a mischievous grin.

Caroline threw her head back, laughing and Klaus found that he was entranced by the vision of her giggling and by the sound of her laughter. "Yeah. I can imagine _you'd_ want to lend Kol. But I don't think he would be very happy being my _brother_" she exhaled, still laughing.

"You've met Kol?" he asked in shock and felt a surge of jealousy go through him. His brother had met her but he hadn't?! It was clearly time for him to get a little more involved with his family's life. Mainly Rebekah's life.

Which basically meant _Caroline's life. _

"Yeah. We've met a couple of times. Though he's always more interested in getting into my pants than anything" she blurted out and then her eyes widened immediately when she realized that she had just said something like that to Kol's brother. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like…" she tried to explain but Klaus cut her off with a reassuring wave of his hand.

"Don't worry, love. We all know Kol for the _kind of person _he is" he drawled sarcastically giving her an apologetic smile.

Caroline relaxed again and watched as Klaus poured the wine he brought into the two flutes, handing her one. She accepted it with a small smile and her heart couldn't help but flutter when their fingers brushed accidently. It was like a whole spark of electricity passed through her.

"So who else have you met?" he asked, suddenly very curious. He wanted to know who else had met _his _Caroline before him.

Caroline seemed thoughtful for a moment. "I've met your mom a couple of times. But I only met your dad once- she was cut off by Klaus again.

"Mikael isn't my father, love" he snapped at her, irately. He didn't talk about it much but with Caroline it seemed fair to tell her that he was the bastard of the family. "My mother had an affair with someone, I am the product of that affair" he told her, grimly.

Caroline's mouth dropped open. Okay, she was definitely _not _expecting that. Rebekah hadn't told her that. "Um, I'm sorry I didn't know" she murmured softly and apologetically.

Klaus shrugged. "So you've met Mikael. What about the rest?" he asked, swiftly changing the topic. And if the hardness of his voice was anything to go by, Caroline knew he didn't want to talk about it.

"I've met Elijah too. I like him. He's very… _polite_" Caroline said with awe in her tone which Klaus didn't like. _Not one bloody bit. _"And I also _love _his suits. Though he certainly has poor standard for choosing women" she commented with a quick eye roll and scrunching up of her nose, which Klaus found extremely adorable.

"Ah! Yes Katerina definitely is one of a kind" he agreed with a sly grin. "What about Finn?" he asked, still smiling. "Have you met him too?" he prompted.

Caroline licked her lips clean and Klaus' erection twitched at the sight of it. He shifted slightly to make himself more comfortable in his _now-_straining pants. "I saw him once when he came to visit in Mystic Falls but not particularly" she told him shrugging and Klaus knew at that moment that she wasn't a very big fan of Finn as she was of Elijah.

"How am I the only one who never met or heard of you?" he asked incredulously, trying to remember if he'd ever met her. "Did you ever come around the manor in Mystic Falls?" he asked dubiously.

Caroline gave him a pointed look. "Of course not. Even though Rebekah's my best friend, she had _way too many _brothers. So we always had sleepovers at my place or at Elena's." she said, as if staying at his mansion in the presence of his brothers and him was the most obnoxious thing she would do. "In my defense though, I didn't know you were _Niklaus _or Klaus. Rebekah always mentioned you as Nick and I was such an idiot, I never even realized that you guys were '_The Mikaelsons' _till _you_ were practically at my doorstep a few days ago" she pointed out waving her hand dramatically and then, shrugging innocently. She, then, took a generous sip of the alcohol clutched in her hand.

Klaus smiled at that. He was now visibly straining against the material of his pants after hearing his name pass through those plump lips. Oh how he wanted to ravish her right now. He wanted to lick those lips, pass his tongue over hers and bite her lower lip with his blunt teeth.

"More?" he questioned gesturing to her glass, pulling himself out of his day dream.

She gave him a sweet smile. "I will but I have to do the dishes first" she said, standing up and straightening herself. When Caroline bent in front of him, only to pick up the dishes from the table of course, he wanted nothing more than to slap her ass, pull down those poor excuse of shorts and bury himself into her until she'd scream his name for the whole world to listen.

But instead he jumped up to his feet like a gentlemen and took the dishes from her. "Allow me to help you" he offered trying to be very decent and caring. Even though, he knew he was the exact opposite of it.

Caroline let him place the dishes in the sink but refused to let him do the dishes. "I'm not going to make you do the dishes" Caroline chuckled and tied up her hair into a messy bun on top of her head with a few tendrils escaping out of it.

Klaus gave her a dimpled smile back. "Nonsense love. If we divide the work, it'll be done more quickly and then I get you continue my… what was it?" he questioned teasingly and make a thinking face. "_Ah_! Yes, the '_I'm-your-roommate's-big-brother-interrogation' _as you so poetically put it" he mocked with a smile.

Caroline laughed at that before raising her hands in surrender. "I'll rinse them, you can dry them off. Deal?" she offered albeit reluctantly.

Klaus nodded and just like that they started doing the dishes. Both of them enjoyed the silence and kept doing their work. Caroline was grateful that Klaus had come and had lunch with her, because it had truly helped keep her mind off Enzo.

While Klaus kept his gaze on Caroline, a small smile played on his lips automatically. She was a truly magnificent creature. Not only a beautiful face but also a great and witty personality. He had never worked in his life and was internally grateful that Caroline had offered him only the role of drying the dishes because he honestly didn't know how to clean them.

But oddly enough, he was willing to do it if it meant staying in her company.

By the time they were on the last of the dishes, Klaus realized it was well past the time he had taken off for lunch. As soon as the thought came to his mind, his phone started ringing. He gave Caroline an apologetic smile before wandering into the living room and picking up the cellphone from his jacket pocket.

It was his assistant.

"Yes" he answered simply.

"Sorry to disturb you Mr. Mikaelson but I have to remind you that your next meeting is in fifteen minutes" she replied in her natural calm tone.

Klaus looked back at Caroline who was almost done with the dishes. He couldn't let this opportunity pass. "Tell Elijah to attend it. I am occupied elsewhere and won't be available for the remainder for the day" he told her dismissively.

"I'll get to it Mr. Mikaelson" she said and Klaus snapped the call shut. He turned to find Caroline coming his way, with a worried expression on her face.

"Everything okay?" she asked and sat down on the couch, grabbing her wine glass.

Klaus smiled as he sat down next to her, leaving a decent amount of distance between them but less than before. "Nothing to worry about, love" he reassured her and brought the wine bottle to fill her glass.

"Thank you" she said grasping the glass in both hands, sipping daintily. "So you've asked me a lot of questions. Do I get the same opportunity?" she asked teasingly.

Klaus playfully narrowed his eyes at her. "I believe I have already promised you an interview. Haven't I sweetheart?" he questioned mischievously. "It's my turn to ask the questions today and then you can ask anything you want at the interview" he suggested with raised eyebrows.

"Deal" she said and thrust her hand out for him to shake but he grabbed ahold of her soft, delicate hand in his larger one and brought it to his lips. His stubble pricked her knuckles but she ignored it and tried to release the breath that she was holding.

As quickly as he had grabbed her hand, he let it go. Caroline shifted uncomfortably. One touch from him had her spiraling out of control. What was she? A teenager with raging hormones?

"Earlier you said _I _would want to lend you Kol" he stated remembering her statement. "What did you mean by that?" he asked frowning.

Caroline tried to stifle her laughter but failed as a few giggles burst through her. "Sorry!" she said, immediately clamping a hand over her mouth to stop the bubbling laughter she felt. "Well Kol told me some stuff so…" she trailed off, unsure of how to explain that Kol had told her the story when he had dumped a very sleeping Klaus into the lake when they were at their lake house.

And that wasn't even the end of it. He had videotaped everything.

Klaus frowned. "Is this about…?" he started and his eyes widened when Caroline nodded.

"Yep. It's the lake house story" she told him and Klaus felt instant relief course through him though he tried not to show it on his face. He had thought Kol had exposed more _humiliating _things of his childhood to her because there certainly were things mortifying enough to make him want to be dead right now.

"Well then my actions to want to send Kol off to any person I've just met are justified?" he questioned lightly, raising his eyebrows.

Caroline shrugged. "Kind of. But I mean that's gotta be the fun times right?" she asked with a glint in her eyes. "These are the days you'll remember when you're old. You know, you have a big family so you can all sit down by the fireplace and talk about it. That's all that matters at the end of the day" she said, a little wistfully. "I would've loved to have such a big family" she added with a small smile.

Klaus' eyes pierced through hers at the moment. He could see the wistful longing her eyes for a family. He knew, from the background check he had on her, her early life had been very unsettling with the divorce between her parents and then her father leaving. Her mother had buried herself in her work to suppress the pain of her husband leaving her while Caroline got neglected.

He could easily see Caroline loving his family. Her fitting into his big family, quite easily, _by his side_. And what's more he found that he liked it. He _wanted _her to fit into his family, by his side.

Suddenly an idea came to his mind as she watched Caroline talk about family and siblings. He was going to have her by his side within the duration of one month. Just in time to introduce her to his family as his own at their monthly family brunch.

_His Caroline. _

Yes, he liked the sound of it.

He was brought out of his thoughts when his phone started ringing again. He gave Caroline an apologetic smile again before bringing the phone to his ear and standing up to walk to the kitchen. "What?" he snapped irritably.

There was a sigh on the other end of the line. "Niklaus, where are you? The financial advisor of the opposing firm is not signing the contract unless you talk to him yourself" Elijah's voice came through, making him even more irritated. Could they really do _nothing _without him? "_In person_" he added stressfully.

"Fine! I'll be there as soon as I can" he said back tiredly. "And tell that bloody man if he doesn't have a good reason for dragging me all the way there I will ruin him" he added harshly before he ended the call.

He walked back into the living room. "I'm sorry sweetheart but work calls and I have to leave" he said immediately but apologetically and reached for his suit jacket and tie. "Thank you so much lunch. I truly enjoyed it" he said softly and held out his hand for her.

Caroline stood up and outstretched her hand for him to shake but like before, he brought it to his lips and pressed a kiss on her bare knuckles. A bit, too quickly, she pulled her hand away and gave him a small smile. "It's no problem. I'll tell Rebekah you came by" she told him politely.

He nodded at her but looked back at her as he made his way out of the main door. "When are you coming for the interview?" he asked curiously. He hadn't yet been given a response from her side which had him worrying. Was she backing out of her job?

Caroline frowned. "Um, I was scheduling for tomorrow but your secretary told me you're not free till two days so…" she said and trailed off aimlessly.

"Don't worry sweetheart. I think I can squeeze in some space for you tomorrow" he said arrogantly and winked at her.

She rolled her eyes in return. "There's that _modesty _in you that I love so much" she said mockingly. "It's such a charm in your personality" she added, before she could control herself.

Klaus simply smirked at her before putting his hand inside his pant pocket and giving her a card. "Here's my number. Call me before eight in the morning tomorrow" he told her and nodded at her.

"Yeah. Thanks" Caroline mumbled, distracted as she kept her eyes on the card in her hand. "Well… Have a good day" she said politely before she watched him disappear in the elevator. She closed the door and shrugged, placing the card on the counter.

As Klaus sat in his car and the driver started driving, he noticed his phone vibrating inside his pocket. He pulled it out to see a text message from his sister.

_Don't say I never did anything for you – R _

_P.S. Caroline likes white roses. _

He smiled at that and replied back.

_You've always been my favorite for a reason Bekah – K _

He was about to put his phone back into his pocket when he dialed a number. "Andrea?"

There was a surprised affirmation on the other side of the line.

"I need you to send a bouquet of white roses to Miss Caroline Forbes tomorrow morning along with the bottle of red wine that you got for lunch today" he told his assistant. His voice curt and formal.

"Yes sir. Will that be all?" she asked, just as formally.

Klaus opened his mouth to say yes but he found the next words spilling out his mouth instead. "Also send a basket of brownies for Rebekah" he added almost shyly.

There was silence on the line for about thirty seconds before his assistant gathered her wits and answered him. "Of course sir" she said and Klaus could almost sense the surprise and the smile in her voice.

He put the phone back into his pocket and let the smile overtake his face. He wondered what it would be like for Rebekah to live every day with Caroline. He would definitely have to ask her about it.

As they reached his office, Klaus couldn't help but look at the tall skyscraper twice. He knew he came here every day but somehow he couldn't contain his excitement about coming here tomorrow.

_**A/N: Did you guys like it? Let me know what you think. This isn't the end of Klaus' stalkerish ways for those who asked. **_

_**And a reviewer commented that Caroline sleeping with Enzo was a bit too rushed and unnecessary and I understand that it was rushed but trust me, NOT unnecessary. It will play a 'very vital' role in Klaus and Caroline's relationship. **_

_**I have great things planned for this story so hang on tight. **_____


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

**A/N: Thank you so much for the nomination for the Klaroline awards for best dark author. I'm honored. Love you all to the moon and back. **

**Special thanks to the lovely Tatia, also known as 'immortalgod'. She helped me a lot with writing this chapter. A damn talented one, this one is. **

**Okay. Another heads up, I've uploaded two new stories. Yes, I said **_**two!**_** So check them out if you're interested. ;) **

Caroline pulled on her black blazer and checked her appearance in the mirror again. She had chosen a white ruffled top with a high-waisted black pencil skirt that ended just above her knee. She quickly got into her black Louboutin pumps and walked out of the room. "Rebekah I'm heading- she started but was cut off by the ringing of the doorbell. It was strange. No one came this early.

She quickly hopped to the door and opened to see a delivery guy holding a large bouquet of her favorite white roses and two gift bags in his hand. Caroline took the ridiculously large bouquet from him and took it inside, opening the door for him completely. "Just put them on the table" she said gesturing to the coffee table in the living room while she walked into the kitchen to find a vase large enough to put the beautiful flowers in.

"Miss Forbes?" The delivery man read off the list as he put the gift bags on the table. Caroline mumbled a 'yup' in response. "Does Miss Mikaelson live here as well?" he asked, looking around.

Caroline dusted her hands off as she came out of the kitchen and grabbed the clipboard to sign it. "Yeah. She's my roommate. Um, who sent these?" she asked eyeing the gift bags and the flowers curiously even though a little part of her suspected the culprit, already.

"Mr. Mikaelson" the guys answered and then took the clipboard back. "The white one is for you and the black one is for Miss Mikaelson" he told her and Caroline nodded. "Have a good day ma'am" he said, walking out of the door.

"Rebekah!" Caroline called out loudly, hoping her lazy ass roommate would come out already. She bent down and took ahold of Rebekah bag first. Normally, she would've just opened it but now she felt hesitant for some reason so she put it back and went for the white one.

She pulled out a wooden box. She opened it and found two bottles of vintage red wine nestled inside. It was the same wine bottle that she had shared the day before with Klaus. The thought made her smile, a little. He remembered.

"What is it you _bloody wanker_?" Rebekah cursed as she came into the room rubbing her eyes and flopped down onto the couch lazily. "Why are you up so early?" she questioned eyeing her friend, up and down. "I don't remember you having a job interview" she commented dryly.

Caroline rolled her eyes. "I have an interview with your brother for the college magazine" she reminded her and then gestured towards the black gift bag. "Your brother sent us gifts this morning" she told her.

"Us?" Rebekah asked surprised. Her brother rarely ever got her gifts. Of course, she had expected that he would give Caroline something but her… it was a surprise. A pleasant surprise. When Caroline nodded, she schooled her expressions into nonchalance. "Well then open it. What are you waiting for?" she asked, surprised her nosey roomy hadn't opened it yet.

"You sure?" Caroline asked unsurely.

Rebekah frowned. "Of course. When have I ever stopped you from opening my stuff?" she asked, confused. She sat up straight when she noticed her friend's wary expression. "Caroline what is this really about?" she questioned straight forwardly.

Caroline sighed. "I don't know. Okay? I don't know anything anymore. It's just that… Before everything, you were just my best friend Bekah but now you're _you. _You're Rebekah _Mikaelson_!" she exclaimed dramatically. "I don't know how to act around you" she murmured quietly and twisted her fingers nervously.

Rebekah's eyes widened and her mouth parted in shock. Tears welled up in her eyes as she realized that she would lose another friend now because of her name. She went forward on her knees without thinking of the consequences and grasped Caroline's hand in her own.

"No Caroline. I'm still Rebekah. _Bekah_. Your best friend. My name changes nothing. I _swear_ I wouldn't have lied to you…" she started nervously and when she looked up at her friend she saw Caroline pursing her lips together. "Care?" she asked anxiously.

Caroline burst into a fit of laughter and doubled over, giggling. "You should've seen your face Rebekah" she gasped out. Rebekah groaned when she realized that she had fell for her roommate's pranks and took the cushion from the couch and started hitting her friend with it. "Hey! Stop! You're messing up my hair" Caroline protested and lifted her arms to protect herself.

Soon, the other blonde exhausted herself and slumped down on the ground. "You're such a bitch" Rebekah commented rolling her eyes, but she had a small smile on her face indicating that she wasn't really angry. Actually, she was very happy on the inside that Caroline still treated her the same. She didn't want to be treated differently among her friends just because she was Rebekah Mikaelson. For once, in her life, she just wanted to live her life as Bekah.

"Aww… I love you too" Caroline said, hugging the other reluctant blonde. "Why didn't you open the gift?" Rebekah asked, pouting.

Caroline stood up and soothed the wrinkles in her clothes. "_Because _I just opened mine and then I was about to check for a tag on the flowers" she said brushing off the dust off her clothes before heading towards the kitchen and bringing the huge flower arrangement she had placed in the vase.

"Wow" Rebekah breathed out. Talk about extravagance.

Caroline nodded. "I know" she mumbled distracted as she searched the flowers for a card. When she found a little folded piece, she quickly plucked it out and began reading it.

_Thank you for your lovely company yesterday, Caroline. _

_I look forward to spending some more quality time with you. _

_Yours truly, _

_Klaus Mikaelson. _

"_Ooh!_ I think my brother is in love with you" Rebekah's voice pulled her from her thoughts. She looked behind her to see Rebekah peering over her shoulder and reading the card. She quickly flipped the card and eyed the chocolate treat in Rebekah's hand. "_Yours truly_. Quite romantic if you ask me" she commented stuffing her mouth.

"What are you eating?" Caroline asked, almost salivating at the aroma of the baked good.

Rebekah held a small basket in her other hand and held forward her empty one. "Brownies" she answered simply. "Card for the brownies" she offered flickering her fingers. "Hand it over" she ordered bossily.

Caroline rolled her eyes but handed over the card in her hand and took hold of the brownies. She grabbed a chocolate brownie and took a bite of it, moaning at its exquisite taste. She looked down and saw so many different types of brownies. Klaus really took gifts to a whole new level.

"Ignoring me? Well, keep doing it. It only proves that you're in your denial phase" Rebekah goaded as she placed the card on the table and opened to box containing the red wine. "See? Another proof that you two belong each other. You both have horrible taste in wine" she said, slightly disgusted.

"I have to go. I'll be late otherwise" Caroline said as she grabbed her bag and stuffed the notes and recorder inside of it. "I'll see you later. Bye!" she called out before she shut the door. Once she got down, Stefan was already waiting for her there. She got in the car and passed him a small smile. "Hey" she said.

"Hi" he replied back with a smile and started driving off. They drove in silence till they reached their first stop. Caroline gathered her bag and her stuff and got out of the car. "Thanks for dropping me off" she said before shutting the door.

Before she could go, however, she heard Stefan's footsteps behind her. She turned and gave him a questioning look. "What?" she asked.

But he just hugged her tight. "I'm here for you if you want to talk" he murmured quietly, rubbing her back affectionately. "I know Enzo leaving wasn't easy for you and it's okay to be hurt" he told her softly.

Caroline hugged him back and pulled back, only to give him a smile. "I know and I'm grateful that you're here Stef but I'm fine. Honestly" she reassured him positively and squeezed his hand upliftingly. "How about we all go out to my family's lake house this weekend? It'll be fun. Besides my dad just went there recently so we won't have to do much cleaning or maintenance" she suggested with a bright smile. "Like old times. Us three against the world" she added with a fond smile.

"Sure thing" Stefan said and leaned in and kissed her cheek. "Do you want me to pick you up?" he asked glancing at his watch. "I can be here in an hour" he offered.

Caroline shook her head. "No it's okay. I'm kind of supposed to meet Elena for lunch" she said sheepishly. Stefan nodded stiffly before scratching his head and turning to his car. "I'll see you later then" she snorted after him as he awkwardly drove away.

Elena and Stefan were high school sweethearts and had been so in love that everyone thought they would end up married. Caroline had even imagined herself as the bridesmaid. But they both had broken apart when Damon had come into the picture with his _stupid_ bad boy personality and stolen Elena's heart.

Caroline shook her head and glanced at her phone to check the time. She still had a good fifteen minutes before her appointment with Klaus. She shrugged and walked inside the tall building. Just as she was about to head to the reception, a man in a suit came straight to her.

"Miss Forbes?" he inquired very formally.

Caroline nodded, unsurely. "Yes that's me" she answered lamely.

"Please come right this way. Mr. Mikaelson's been expecting you" he said and held out his hand for her to proceed towards the elevators. As they entered the elevator, he pressed the button for the top floor and stood quietly with his hand tied in front of him.

The elevator stopped three times during the ride. "Yes. She's coming right up" she noticed the guard speaking into an earpiece and raised her eyebrows. Talk about security.

Before she could think more comments about this _little security detail_, the elevator made a sound indicating their arrival. The guard stepped outside and led her past another reception table. The women behind the counter peered curiously over to Caroline and whispered back to each other.

Caroline frowned and quickly checked her reflection on her phone's screen. She didn't have smudged makeup or anything then why was everyone looking at her like that?

"Andrea, this is Miss Forbes. Please let her through to Mr. Mikaelson in five minutes" the man said to a blond woman who wore a plain yet very professional gray pantsuit and her hair pulled into a chignon.

She nodded and gestured towards the seats in the waiting area. "Of course" she said and once Caroline was settled, the man left. "Would you like something to drink while you wait?" Andrea asked politely.

Caroline shook her head. "No thank you" she said and tucked a lock behind her ear.

A small buzz came through and Andrea took that as signal to fly off to the door. She poked her head inside and nodded to whatever Klaus barked at her. She turned and gestured for Caroline to come forward. "You can go in now" she said stiffly and Caroline nodded before walking inside the office.

The door closed behind her but she didn't turn. Her eyes were focused on the huge office she was currently stepping into. There was only one word to describe it.

_Magnificent. _

His office was way too big for just one man. In front of the floor-to-ceiling windows, there was a huge modern dark-wood desk that six people could comfortably eat around. It matched the coffee table by the couch. Everything else was white - ceiling, floors, and walls except, on the wall by the door, where a mosaic of small paintings hung, thirty-six of them arranged in a square. They were exquisite - a series of mundane, forgotten objects painted in such precise detail they looked like photographs. Displayed together, they were breathtaking.

Apart from the paintings, the rest of the office was cold, clean, and clinical.

"You're late" his husky voice pulled her out of her thoughts as she looked over at him, gazing out of the glass paned window giving his back to her. His voice was tight, stern and controlled. Almost like he was angry.

She frowned and glanced at her wrist watch. "I'm pretty sure I'm here five minutes early" she commented with a nervous chuckle as she glanced at the electronic wall clock just to confirm her thoughts.

"I've been waiting for you since half an hour" he remarked as he swiveled in his chair and gave her a stern glare. He motioned for her to take the seat in front of him. She frowned but moved forward and sat down, knowing that she couldn't really give him a piece of her mind right now when she was going to interview him.

But that certainly didn't mean she was going to take his shit.

"Yeah well my appointment was for ten so I came at ten" she replied just as tightly. Was she over his mood swings or what? Her earlier opinion about him had totally changed. He was a jerk. Knowing that it would be rude for her to not thank him for the gifts, she sighed. "I received your gifts this morning. Thank you. You didn't have to- she started but his booming voice cut her off.

"Did you drive here by yourself Miss Forbes?" he questioned formally, probably warning her to stay professional.

She narrowed her eyes at him and sat straighter. "No. A friend dropped me off" she replied vaguely. "Can we get on with the interview please?" she asked directly.

Klaus pursed his lips and regarded her intently, making her squirm slightly. Could this be categorized as harassment? "I haven't finished asking my questions yet" he told her, almost amused.

"Yeah well I'm here for asking the questions. Not the other way Mr. Mikaelson" she snapped at him irately, before she took out her notes, recorder, pen and set them on the table. "I hope you don't mind if I record this" she mumbled more as a formality than anything.

"And if I say I do?" he questioned playfully, making Caroline clench her jaw tightly. She was having a whiplash with his mood swings.

"Then I guess I don't really care" she told him, in a biting tone, giving him a sarcastic smile. Klaus raised his hands up in surrender at her snarky tone, knowing that he had already pushed her limits for the day.

Taking a deep breath, Caroline forced herself to calm down. She had been aiming for this interview since _forever _and she would be damned if she let this _asshole's moodiness _ruin it.

"You're really young to have achieved so much success- she started but was cut off when Klaus chuckled dryly.

"I'm really young to have achieved so much success. What is the secret to it? _To what do I owe my success_?" he guessed halfheartedly. "I'm sure you can do better than that, love" he taunted, leaning back in his leather, office chair.

Caroline glared him and slammed the pencil on her notebook a bit too forcefully. "No. _Actually_ I was going to say that we all know that you inherited millions from your family and just managed to turn them into billions so do you honestly think that you're as big a _hotshot_ as you pretend to be but _obviously _you know my questions better" she snapped at him, gritting her teeth together in an effort not to pull her own hair out.

"Just for your information, _sweetheart, _I did not inherit millions from my family. When I did take charge of this company, it was sinking and deep in debt. Sure the Mikaelson name did give it a boast but the rest of it was all because of my effort, planning and hard work" he told her in all seriousness. "So to answer your question, yes I do think I am the… _hotshot _I pretend to be" he answered a little more coolly than before.

Caroline opened her mouth to say something but then closed it back again. Sighing, she shook her head. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have… I just read that- she stammered unsure of what to say but he cut her off again.

"You read correctly, love. There's not a lot of people who knew the truth about the condition of the company though" he replied swirling in his chair and looking away from her towards the large glass windows that overlooked the city in a beautiful manner. He looked down and could see people walking around on the pavement in tiny dots. He didn't know why but it reminded him of the struggle he had to face to achieve the success he had today.

Mikael had done nothing but leave the company to ruins before it was handed over to Klaus.

"So you let people believe that you had a sound company handed to you on a silver platter when it was practically drowning and you _saved _it?" she asked, hoping she had gotten all of the facts correct.

"When you say it like that, it doesn't sound like a very smart move but- Klaus started a little embarrassed but he didn't why he was so embarrassed or why he had even told her that. He hadn't even told Rebekah about their financial condition of years ago. He didn't want anyone to give him sympathetic, pitiful glances even when he was at his lowest.

But, somehow, with Caroline everything spilled out of his mouth before he even realized it.

"No. I didn't mean it like that" Caroline pulled him out of his thoughts. "It was a good move. A really smart one actually. But you obviously knew that" she snorted a little embarrassed by her burst out.

Klaus smirked at that. Why was she so nervous and fidgety today? "Did you like the flowers I sent?" he asked suddenly ignoring their previous conversation.

Caroline looked up at him, surprised by the question but nodded. "Yes. They were lovely. Thank you but totally unnecessary" she said, squirming uncomfortably.

Klaus shrugged. "I'm glad you did, sweetheart" he answered back, totally ignoring her comment about them being unnecessary. He didn't need her consent to spoil her. If he wanted to gift her something, then he would spoil her rotten.

"Um… Back to the questions" Caroline said as she broke the awkward silence that fell over them. "I know you don't have much time anyway" she commented glancing at her wrist watch to see that only ten minutes had passed.

"Nonsense, love. I'd much rather spend the whole day with you than anyone else really" he remarked with a wide smirk on his face.

She sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "What will it take to make you answer my questions seriously?" she asked tiredly.

"A question for a question love" he suggested simply. That way maybe he could uncover more secrets about her.

Caroline gave him a pointed look at that. "No" she simply uttered.

"_No_?" he questioned incredulously. He raised his eyebrows, amused by her quick refusal. "Afraid I'll ask something you won't be able to answer?" he asked challengingly.

She, however, scoffed in return. "Hardly" she remarked with narrowed eyes. "I just want to remind you that this is a professional interview and we are _not _playing twenty questions" she cemented, glaring him.

"Come on, love. Live a little" he challenged her, playfully. "I dare you" he added cunningly, knowing that she would never turn down a dare.

"Fine. You can ask your questions" she said, sighing but before Klaus could say anything she pointed a warning finger at him. "_But" _she added, cautiously. "Only after I've finished my interview" she declared sternly.

"Alright, love. Go ahead" he said with a smirk as he leaned back in his chair and watched her with amused eyes.

Taking a deep breath, Caroline forced her gaze on the questions jotted on her notebook. She had been preparing for this interview for months. "So my first question was going to be how you started off your company but I know that… so I'll just skip that part" she mumbled distractedly as she gazed at her questions.

"You can't publish what I told you" Klaus told her in all seriousness. He wasn't even sure why he had told her in the first place but he wasn't going to let her share this information with the world.

"Understandable" Caroline said with a nod. "Why don't you answer the question then? How did you get your start?" she questioned with a small smirk, knowing that whatever he was about to say would be a fat lie.

"It is a matter of public record that I inherited this company from my father" he said and stiffened at the mention of Mikael but after that brief moment of hesitation, he easily launched into the well narrated details of how he inherited the business from his father and there was burden on his shoulders to make sure he would make the company's name flourish twice as much as Mikael had.

Caroline barely registered his words, though. Her focus was stuck on the confidence and determination in his voice and expression as he talked about his work. It made her smile, a little, in awe. Anyone who had passion for their work had great respect in Caroline's eyes.

"How do you see this company evolving in the next three years?" she asked automatically as he finished his speech and patiently waited for her question. He seemed to take a little time to think about this question and eventually started again about how he would like the company to progress even more.

"What about yourself?" Caroline blurted out before she could stop herself. Damn her curiosity and lack of mouth filter. "I mean where do, you see yourself in the next three years?" she questioned, trying to gain her momentum.

Klaus raised an eyebrow at the question and leaned forward with his elbows on the desk between them. "I see myself trying to make way into _uncharted_ territory" he answered coyly with a smirk playing his lips.

Caroline frowned at the ambiguous answer. "_Uncharted territory?" _she asked, confused.

Klaus nodded, certainly. "Yes. New relations. New _people_" he said, rolling his eyes dramatically but the dimpled smile on his face easily confirmed that he was joking.

After catching meaning of his words, Caroline's head shot up and she locked her wide, shocked eyes with his.

Did he-? Or was she-?

"Next question, sweetheart" he told her teasingly and leaned back in his seat comfortably.

Taking a moment to gather her wits, Caroline glanced at her notebook and chose a less _risky _question. "If there's one thing you could change about the company. What would it be?" she asked, tucking her hair behind her ear.

Klaus watched her and resisted the urge to jump over the desk and run his fingers through her soft tresses himself. "Nothing" he answered back, immediately, as her question finished.

Caroline rolled her eyes and mumbled a quick. "There's that arrogance I was missing _so_ much"

Klaus chuckled, wholeheartedly. He was a self-conceited, arrogant bastard, he knew. But she had only seen so little of him as of now.

"What is the most frustrating part of working here?" she asked, moving forward with the interview.

_You're not here. _He thought to answer but knew that it would be too much. "Lack of new faces" he answered instead. "I value loyalty and those who promised their loyalty to Mikaelson Corporation in the beginning have never one been fired or replaced. Therefore there are less new faces around" he explained with a sly smirk.

"Oookay" Caroline said, not really understanding his answer. There was too much about this guy that she did _not _understand. "If there is something troubling you and it keeps you up at night. What would it be and why?" she asked, moving on.

_You _

He thought immediately with a wolfish grin on his face and he had just opened his mouth to spin her into another tale of confusion when she caught the look on his face and shook her head. "Okay. Never mind. Don't answer that" she muttered irately.

Klaus raised his eyebrows, bemused by her behavior but chose to remain quiet.

"You're the CEO of your company. Obviously, while it has its perks, it must have some disadvantages too" she started and unconsciously bit the end of her pencil. "What is the thing that you dislike the most about this attention? And what is the aspect you enjoy most about your job?" she said and looked up at him to watch him gazing at her intently with his fists clenching the arm rests of the chair.

Klaus took a deep breath before answering this question. "I don't mind the attention, to be honest. My family has been in the spotlight for years, love and it's simply part of routine now" he said, shrugging. "As I said earlier, I enjoy every aspect of my job though the control and influence it provides me, are definitely the perks that I enjoy most" he told her and watched her roll her eyes. "You don't agree?" he questioned, curiously.

Ignoring his question, she moved forward. "Speaking of routine. Tell me about yours? What is your daily routine? How do you manage being a CEO and being _yourself _all day?" she recited from the notebook. She held back a scoff. If she had known his arrogance before, she would've never added this question. He was the CEO. There was no other Klaus in there.

Only _Klaus Mikaelson_, the CEO.

Again, he fell into an easy speech about his routine. To Caroline, it was all really boring. Even though, she had the same subjects as him, she could never imagine herself sitting on a desk the whole day, simply signing files and ordering people around.

Well, she would _love _ordering people around but not if she would do nothing by herself and simply sit behind a desk.

As Caroline kept thinking in her mind, Klaus finished his speech and looked over at her. She truly looked stunning today and she looked even better when she was lost in thought, using that pretty little head of hers.

He had been waiting for her even before the appointment. She had even haunted his dreams the night before and now, seeing her in front of him in those _tempting _clothes, it was testing his patience and restraint. He had half the mind to push her against the wall and shove that tight skirt up only to push his length inside of her.

While, answering her questions, Klaus' gaze travelled along his office. He could almost count all of the surfaces he would take her once she was truly his.

"Next question?" he prompted, snapping her thought of her thoughts and trying to take his mind off the tightness in his pants.

Caroline's head snapped up to him and a faint blush made its way on her cheeks. "Oh? Sorry I got caught up" she mumbled quietly. Clearing her throat, she started again. "What do you like to do outside work?" she asked and now, she was genuinely curious.

"I have my own chain of casinos and nightclubs so naturally I enjoy clubbing out with my brother, Kol every once in a while" he answered with a small smirk tugging his lips. "Though I truly enjoy running and jogging. It helps clear my mind" he answered confidently, not knowing why he wanted to share _everything _with this girl.

Caroline silently raised her eyebrows in surprise and bit her lip to conceal her smile. She quickly glanced down at her notebook, pretending to scribble something down but Klaus noticed the mischievous glint in her eyes.

"You don't agree, love?" he asked with his own eyebrow arched.

"No. I didn't say anything" she replied, shaking her head.

Klaus raised his arms and leaned forward on the desk. "Come on love! You can say it. You were clearly thinking something else" he pointed out, smugly.

Caroline kept scribbling on her notebook and shrugged, elegantly. "Fine. I half expected you to say that you stalk your siblings, _hobby sake_" she answered with a small smirk.

"Looking after them isn't stalking, sweetheart"

She shrugged again, letting him know that she didn't believe a word she said. "If you say so" she said, unconvincingly.

"Whatever I do is for their benefit and their wellbeing" he defended himself, feeling the need to prove that he was innocent.

Caroline slapped the pencil on her notebook and looked up at him. "What I say to you now stays between us. Okay?" Even though, it was a question, she didn't give him the moment to answer. "I get that in your_ weird,_ _overprotective _way you care for them and are trying to look out for them but there's a way to do everything. Like today for example, sending brownies is a good way to show that you care. But threatening to get Rebekah's trust fund frozen, _not _a good move" she explained as nicely as she could.

"She's clearly incapable of taking decisions for herself. I am merely trying to look out for her" he argued, agitated that no one understood his point of view. "If I have to use other means for motivation, I won't hesitate. Simple as that, love" he stood his ground.

"All I'm trying to say is that if you keep doing things the way you do now, they'll end up fearing you instead of loving you" Caroline countered with raised hands as a sign of withdrawal.

Klaus leaned forward as his eyes twinkled roguishly and his lips curved into an impish grin. "Maybe I want them to fear me" he retorted swiftly, taking her by surprise. By the look of shock and disbelief on her face, he knew he had succeeded in silencing her.

"I assume you still have one question" he said with raised eyebrows and a challenging smirk on his handsome face.

Closing her gaping mouth, Caroline gained her momentum back and gave him an indulgent look. "How does your working routine affect your personal life?" she asked as her voice drowned in confusion. She was totally and utterly disorganized. Why would any sane person want their own siblings to fear them? What was loyalty if there was no love and only fear?

Then again, maybe Klaus wasn't exactly a sane person.

"My work takes up a lot of my time. Consequently, I must admit that the communal group I travel in is very restricted" he self-confessed, almost sheepishly. For the first time since entering his office, Caroline found that Klaus looked truly uncomfortable and even a little embarrassed. "My _social circle_ as people say consists of very few people and those too are close in terms of family" he told her and shrugged to show as if he didn't care. But he did.

Under all his façade of self-confidence, arrogance and smugness, Klaus was just an apprehensive person trying to hide his flaws.

_Like her_.

They were both the same, she concluded in her mind as she kept analyzing all of his words in her head over and over again.

"Thank you for taking your time out for this interview Mr. Mikaelson" she replied, a little softly as she ticked the last of her questions. She stuffed the notebook and pencil into her bag and then reached for the recorder on the table but he reached forward and grabbed her wrist.

She looked up at him questioningly and a bit alarmed.

He smirked at that but didn't loosen his grip on her wrist. "You seemed to have forgotten our deal, love" he said, almost playfully, forgetting all the shyness and embarrassment from a few minutes ago. "It's your turn to answer my questions" he reminded her.

She tried to snatch her hand back and glance at her wrist watch but he had a tight hold on her so she turned her gaze to the digital clock on the wall. "Fine. What do you want to know?" she asked impatiently.

Klaus let go of her hand and stood up, straightening his suit. "Not like this. Let me take you out for lunch where I can grill you for some answers" he suggested as he began to pack up everything around them. He walked over to her side and looked at her. "There's a restaurant here just around the corner. Let's go" he said in his _no nonsense _attitude.

"I can't" Caroline spoke up, realizing he was going to keep ordering her around if she didn't speak up now.

He frowned and looked back at her with stern eyes. "Why?" he asked sharply.

"I have to be somewhere else" she said and glanced at her wrist watch to see that she was going to be late if she didn't leave now.

Klaus raised an eyebrow at that but his posture remained tense. "With Stefan I presume?" he asked dryly, trying not to let the jealousy overcome him. First Enzo, now Stefan. How many men would he have to get rid of to get her?

Caroline shook her head. "No. Another friend from high school. Can't you ask these questions later?" she asked almost pleadingly. She didn't want to be rude and to tell him straight that it wasn't any of his business especially after the eye opening interview she had taken.

"Of course" he said, a little disappointed, but held out his arm like a gentleman and showed her the way before retreating towards his chair. Now, it was Caroline's turn to frown.

"You're going to work again?" she questioned a bit confused. Was he busy and just decided to drop everything for her? If so, could she _really _say no, now?

Klaus smirked playfully at _obvious _observation. "Since you're unwilling to go out for lunch with me, what other option do I have, love?" he asked cunningly tripping her into a pool of guilt. "Have a wonderful time with your friend though" he wished enthusiastically.

Caroline rolled her eyes at his attempt – _successful attempt – _to lull her into the sense of guilt and then placed her hands on her hips. "Fine! Come on then. Let's go" she reluctantly agreed, mentally slapping herself. She'd have to call and reschedule with Elena now.

But what choice did she honestly have when he guilt-tripped her like that?

He stood up again and took his sweet time, straightening his suit jacket. "Are you sure sweetheart? You seemed so determined to meet this _friend _of yours just moments ago" he teased again smugly and then walked over to her.

Caroline rolled her eyes. "Yes. I'm sure. Now let's just go before I change my mind" she answered back immediately, walking ahead of him towards the door.

As Klaus walked behind her with a smirk on his face, he observed the way her hips swayed as she walked ahead of him and he had half the mind to let her walk ahead of him the whole way. The way the tight skirt hugged her hips he could almost imagine how tight _she _would be.

Taking a few quick steps, he quickly joined her at her side with his hand on her back, steering her out of his office. Once they were out of the office, the receptionist and his assistant quickly stood up. "Tell the driver to get the car" he told them, without actually gazing at them but watched Caroline instead.

Caroline tried to shrug off his hand from her back but it remained there and he even went as far as to caress her back with his thumb which made shivers run down her spine.

Once they were in the elevator, Caroline noticed that he was standing much closer to her than needed and his hand still lingered on her waist. There were only two other people other than them until the elevator stopped at the fifteenth floor and an elder looking gentlemen in a navy blue suit stepped in with two more people behind him. The space that seemed too wide was now constrained and she was pushed closer to Klaus.

She glanced at the numbers discreetly, praying that the lift would just _move _faster. The constant brushing of Klaus' chest against her back was making her shiver intensely.

As Caroline avoided looking her in the eye, Klaus immensely enjoyed being stuck in an elevator with Caroline. He would be ecstatic, though, if the whole bloody thing stopped functioning right now.

"Klaus?" the older man called out his name and it was only then that Klaus realized that this man was an old associate of his.

He held out his hand and shook the older man's hand firmly. "Mr. Harrison" he greeted with a polite smile.

The man chuckled warmly. "I've seen you in your diapers Mikaelson. You can call me by my first name" the older man, a family friend of his father's, teased as he looked over at Klaus. "And who is this lovely young lady with you here?" he asked almost amused as he glanced at Caroline, Klaus' arm on her waist and then again Klaus.

Klaus rolled his eyes but didn't bother to hide the smile on his face. "This is Caroline Forbes… an _acquaintance _of _mine_" he answered smugly, ignoring the slight pain he felt when Caroline elbowed him deliberately in the process of holding out her hand. "Sweetheart, this is Andrew Harrison. He's a family friend and has been working with me at Mikaelson Global since I started" he introduced, leaning in close to her ear to whisper.

Caroline kept the polite smile plastered on her face as she greeted the old man. The ding of the elevator indicated their arrival on the ground floor which was seemingly only Klaus and Caroline's destination.

"Sorry to cut the introductions short but Caroline and I have somewhere to be" Klaus said and urged Caroline out of the elevator with his hand on her lower back. "I'll see you around though" Klaus said as a farewell but just as the duo had gotten out of the lift, Andrew's voice made them both turn.

Klaus in perfect haughtiness and Caroline, in shock.

"It's nice to finally see you with someone actually pleasant, Klaus"

The elevator doors closed on Caroline's stunned and Klaus' smug face as Andrew's chuckles kept ringing throughout the space around them.

They both stayed silent for a while, continuing their journey outside the building. Klaus waited for Caroline to say something since he knew she wasn't one for silence. As expected, once the car started moving, Caroline turned to face Klaus in the backseat.

"So you _are_ going to tell him that we aren't a couple. _Right_?"

It was that one question that made Klaus throw his head back and laugh more carefree than he ever had.

_Caroline was the one for him. _He was sure of it.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

**A/N: I'm sorry guys for the short chapter. It's shorter than usual but I felt the need to end it where it has been. Writing's been hard because I'm not doing well with my studies and I need everything to be relatively calm in my life so that I can write peacefully. **

**But let's celebrate the new upcoming crossover of Stefan Salvatore to the originals with this chapter! Yaaay! Hopefully they'll talk about Caroline! *fingers crossed* **

**P.S. I have good news to share regarding my own life. Actually two. First, my sister gave birth to my beautiful baby nephew and secondly, I'm doing very good, health wise. Thank you for your prayers everyone! Love you all and thank you so much for your support. I wish I could thank all of you by name and hug each and every one of you. **

**Onto the chapter now. (Sorry for my rambling) **

Lunch was not how Caroline had expected it to be.

First off, she was supposed to be sitting across Elena and not Klaus.

Secondly, Elena _-Klaus- _wasn't supposed to be staring at her with such a heated gaze. It made her squirm uncomfortably in her seat.

Thirdly and _lastly, _the menu card behind which she was hiding her face, wasn't supposed to be snatched away from her by the waiter who gave her pitiful smile.

"I'm glad to see you've finally decided to stop hiding behind your menu card" Klaus' comment made her head snap to him.

Clearing her throat, Caroline jutted her chin outwards. "I wasn't hiding behind the menu" she denied, petulantly.

"Of course not" Klaus replied, with his dimpled smile on display, as if he was cooing a small child.

"I wasn't" Caroline responded, annoyed that he wasn't taking her seriously. Even though, she was lying because she was hiding behind her menu, but he didn't need to know that. When he raised a suspecting yet mocking eyebrow at her, she sighed and slumped in her seat. "I was… just trying to make you look away" she mumbled, discreetly rolling her eyes.

"And why would you want me to do that?" he asked, perplexed by her sudden demand.

"Because it's creepy" she burst out at him, leaning forward to make him understand that, him, staring at her like that was seriously ticking her off. "Can you stop?" she told him, not really caring about his answer.

"Is it crime to observe someone so beautiful, love?" Klaus asked, his voice laced with amusement and waggishness.

"Yes it is. When you're looking like a … _a creep_!" Caroline spluttered out, without missing a beat. "And stop calling me that" she couldn't help but add, childishly crossing her arms over her chest.

Klaus smirked and kept his eyes trained on her. "Alright, lov- He stopped himself before completing his endearment and gave her a tight smile before murmuring. "… _Caroline…" _

Caroline breath caught at the way her name sounded through his lips. Coughing, she started. "So what did you want to talk about?" she asked, trying to divert her attention elsewhere. _Anywhere, _really than how her name rolled off his tongue so beautifully.

"I want to talk about you" he said, sounding very confident yet intrigued at the same time. "Your hopes, your dreams… Everything you want in life" he expressed as he sat forward in his seat.

Caroline narrowed her eyes at him, in response before leaning forward so she could tell him what she was _sure _she needed to. "Just so we're clear" she started, whispering conspiratorially as if sharing a dirty secret. All the while, he gazed at her amused. "I'm too smart to be seduced by you"

He smiled back at her, showing his dimples and then blinked. "That's why I like you" he replied back without missing a beat.

Rolling her eyes and she shook her head and sat back in her seat. "You know I get that you're… trying to _woo _me or whatever but it's not going to work" she said, crossing her arms over her chest. "You're Rebekah's brother and things would never work between us" she clarified, shaking her head.

Klaus, however, remained cool and was hardly affected by her words. He always got what he wanted, no matter who stood in the way. "I wouldn't be so hasty in making assumptions, love" he said, disregarding her earlier comment about pet names.

"I'm not hasty. I just happen to be very practical" she replied with her head held high. "I have plans… a future that I've considered ahead of me. A future which does _not _involve you" she said, being as straightforward as possible. It may be harsh but she didn't need any boys in her life right now.

A small voice in her head told her, though, that Klaus wasn't just a boy.

She chose to ignore that voice.

Leaning forward on his elbows, Klaus let a small smirk appear on his lips and looked at her through narrowed eyes. "Maybe I'm not trying to _woo _you. Maybe I'm simply trying to access your character to see what kind of a person my baby sister's roommate is" he countered, coolly.

She snorted at that. "You wouldn't have let me anywhere near Rebekah if you didn't already believe me to be harmless" she replied back without missing a beat. "Please, your entire family has met me. I'm as harmless as they get"

"Perhaps I don't trust Elijah's judgment on this matter" he continued on with a smirk on his face as he leaned too close to her and played with a strand of her hair that had fell on her forehead. "You could fool anyone with this innocent face" he said, darkly.

An uninterested look appeared on Caroline's face before she narrowed her eyes and slapped his hand away from her face. "There's no chance between you and me so you should stop trying" she said firmly. "We can't…" she added, frustrated at him.

"I don't understand why not" he said calmly. "You don't have a boyfriend, you're not seeing someone else…" he rattled off.

"Maybe I- I'm interested in someone else already" she lied, smoothly.

Luckily or _unluckily _for her, he bought that and only clenched his jaw with a curt nod. "Regardless of what you think, Caroline, I'm _not _trying to woo you" he assured her, steadfastly. _'Not now, anyway'_ he thought somewhat bitterly.

Caroline blushed and looked down, tucking her hair behind her ear shyly as she looked at her plate.

They remained silent for the rest of the time until their meals arrived and both of them dug into them, ignoring the awkward silence. Choosing to get rid of the awkwardness, Caroline spoke up first. "So Rebekah told me you've lived in London for quite some time…" she said, starting some general conversation. "Are you here for expansion or just visiting?" she asked, offhandedly.

Klaus seemed pleasantly surprised by her effort at some civil conversation and only smiled slightly as he began to answer. "Off the record sweetheart, I'm here to take over" he whispered with a tiny smirk playing on his lips.

"That seems… nice" she said, obviously unimpressed.

Klaus frowned at that. "You don't seem to be too enthused by the idea?" he questioned lightly. "Should I be taking personal offence to this?" he added jokingly.

She shook her head at that, toying with her fork. "No. I didn't mean it like that" she assured him. "Does Rebekah know you'll be shifting back here?" she asked, knowing that he would probably live here full time now since he was taking charge of the offices in the States.

At that Klaus smiled sheepishly. "I haven't announced it yet within my family" he admitted, wiping the corner of his mouth with the napkin.

"Aaaand you want my help to break the news to Rebekah?" Caroline guessed with a fake sarcastic smile.

He simply grinned back. "So much more than a pretty face" he murmured with a hint of pride in his voice.

She chose to ignore it. "It's your family's business. I'm not sure why you need my help" she said with a shrug.

"Rebekah is… not an easy person" he said, wincing when she scoffed at the '_not-an-easy-person_' bit.

Caroline rolled her eyes at that statement. "I'm her roommate, tell me about it" she muttered, shaking her head.

"I'm going to take Rebekah shopping a few days later to tell her and I want you to join us" Klaus said with finality.

Caroline glared him at that. "A please here or there wouldn't be too much to ask for" she piped in sarcastically at his authoritative tone.

Klaus playfully rolled his eyes in return. "Alright, love" he conceded. "Would you _please _accompany Rebekah and I to our shopping trip?" he asked, putting pressure on please.

"Don't you think that would be slightly awkward? I mean she's your sister. She would love to know that you're back" Caroline reasoned not understanding him one bit.

"She liked knowing I wasn't here so she could fool around without any check and balance. But now- he was cut off by Caroline though.

"It simply means that you're supposed to let her live her life without any interference." She explained, hoping to change his way of thinking so Rebekah could get some freedom.

Klaus pondered at that thought for a few minutes as they both silently finished their meals.

"What are your thoughts on Stefan Salvatore?" he asked abruptly, making Caroline look up in surprise.

She raised her eyebrows in shock and shook her head. "Stefan's the best man there ever could be. He's loving, caring and so kind" she rattled on, thinking he was asking all this information to see if Stefan was the right guy for his baby sister. She made sure to ignore Stefan's more irritating and annoying qualities, prattling on about how good he was.

Klaus, on the other hand, saw this as her hidden affection for Stefan. So his doubt was confirmed now. Caroline did have an interest in Stefan and judging by the way, Stefan's eyes lit up when he saw Caroline, he was sure that the affection wasn't one sided.

However, he had also noticed the crush his sister harbored on the younger Salvatore.

How would she feel now to know that her best friend, whom she was trying to defend, had intentions towards her crush?

"Thanks for lunch. I hope you got all your questions answered" Caroline said, almost teasingly as they both exited the restaurant.

Klaus gave her a dimpled smile at that. "Some of them" he answered mysteriously. "But thank _you _for having lunch with me, Caroline" he said, genuinely turning to look at her. "Now let's get you home before Rebekah files away a missing person's report" he joked, placing his hand on her back, urging her forward towards his car.

"Oh, no. That's okay. I have to meet a friend who'll drop me home. It's okay" she said, obviously not wanting to burden him an subtly trying to ignore his hand on her back.

Klaus raised his eyebrow at that.

"What?" she asked, frowning.

"You're going to have to tell me more than that, love" he argued, clearly not leaving it alone. "What friend?" he elaborated.

Caroline narrowed her eyes at that. "Excuse m- she started her rant but Klaus cut her off.

"I'm simply asking because you should know that I wouldn't just leave Rebekah here all by herself even if she gave me the very same answer that you just gave me" he explained, calmly. "You are precious to me, just as much Rebekah is" he murmured looking at her with his puppy eyes. "Besides, I don't want to tell Bekah that I left her friend here, whom she considers a dear sister and when you get randomly kidnapped, I be held responsible" he said, teasingly.

Caroline rolled her eyes. "Elena Gilbert. My and Rebekah's high school best friend" she explained, sighing. "Not so much Rebekah's now though" she added absentmindedly as an afterthought.

Klaus nodded and filed that information for later. He would have to search up this Elena Gilbert, later.

"I'm meeting her over at the coffee shop just two blocks down" she said, randomly pointing towards that direction. "Thanks again for the offer though. Now is this much information enough to sate your curiosity?" she inquired back, mockingly.

"Allow me to drop you off at the coffee shop then?" he offered with a full charming smile, ignoring her last comment. If only she knew that he would never be bored with new information about her.

"It's like five minutes away!" she spluttered, not believing him right now.

"Excellent. It won't take much time then either" he grinned before extending his arms motioning for her to start walking. "For your safety, love" he added, giving her a wide eyed innocent look.

"Fine!" she conceded, thinking how right Rebekah had been about her brother. "But just so you know, the feminist in me is going to kill me for this later" she added, petulantly.

Klaus laughed at that but started walking after her as she started moving down the street.

Within minutes, they reached their destination which was in front of a busy yet quaint little coffee shop. "Well, thanks again" Caroline said, looking at him with a grateful smile.

"I hope you have a good day, sweetheart" he wished her, bending down to press a kiss against her soft, smooth cheek which lasted much longer than necessary. "Goodbye" he said, finally backing away but not before catching the look of utter surprise on her face.

Blushed cheeks, flushed skin, wide beautiful eyes and parted lips.

How he wanted to kiss her at that moment!

However, he restrained himself and with one more grin planted on his face, he backed away towards his waiting car.

Rebekah sighed as she heard an impatient knock on her door followed by a series of ringing of the doorbell. "Bloody hell… Caroline I'm coming!" she murmured angrily as she marched towards the door, barefoot and opened it to find her brother standing outside.

"Why am I not surprised?" she questioned sarcastically, with an unimpressed glare on her face as she let her brother in. "Where's Caroline?" she asked, doubtfully.

Klaus smirked at that. "With a friend of hers. Elena Gilbert, I believe" he answered with a mysterious glint in his eyes.

Rebekah rolled her eyes at that and went to sit in her living room. "Why are you here then?" she asked, getting straight to the point.

"To ask you how many _boys_ are exactly after Caroline?" he asked, sitting down next to her.

She frowned at that. "Last I remember there was this British guy whose trying damn hard to get into her pants" she muttered sarcastically.

"I'm glad you find this amusing because I have news for you that you might find even more hilarious" he jabbed back at her, folding his arms behind his head.

She raised her eyebrow, waiting for him to explain which he finally did with a long suffering sigh. "Caroline is interested in Stefan" he told her, with an edge in his voice.

Rebekah paled for a moment before casting a cold look on her face. "Nice try Nik but I'm not falling for this" she sneered, hatefully.

"There's no point in denial now, love" he cooed, gently. "Does she know that you've been harboring a crush on Stefan Salvatore since _forever_?" he asked, mockingly with a hint of seriousness in his voice.

Rebekah stayed quiet, mulling over the facts in her head. She had noticed that Stefan and Caroline were awfully close but that's what best friends always were… _Close. _

_She was also friends with Enzo and then she hooked up with him. _

"How do you know?" she asked her brother, quietly.

"She told me herself, today at lunch" he told her, simply. "You are more than welcome to observe for yourself in future" he offered, openly.

Klaus seemed to notice how his sister deflated after his confirmation of the relationship, no doubt thinking she had no chance with Stefan now. He wrapped an arm around her shoulder and gave her a light squeeze.

"She's got nothing on you, Rebekah" he whispered, encouragingly. "Besides Stefan Salvatore isn't the end of the world" he said, pressing a kiss to her hair. When she didn't reply, he sighed and pulled back. "I didn't want to hurt you Rebekah. I simply wanted you to know who your family is and who your friends are" He clarified himself, diplomatically.

Just as he was about to leave, he heard her voice. "Caroline isn't the end of the world either, Nik" she replied, softly. Well, to others it might seem soft but Klaus could clearly detect the coldness and maliciousness in her voice. He had no doubt that Caroline and Stefan would have a hurricane coming their way.

And he couldn't help but feel a little guilty about it.

_Maybe I was wrong about them. _

He quickly shook that thought away. The awe and admiration in Caroline's voice has been undeniable.

They were definitely interested in each other. Too bad that they were both of the center of the affection of two Mikaelson siblings.

Caroline and Stefan didn't stand a chance.

With that thought in his mind, he headed back to his office, knowing he had a lot work to do but he could leave the rest to Rebekah.

"Well that wasn't totally awkward" Caroline commented as she clicked in her seatbelt and waited for her friend to do the same.

Stefan laughed as he reversed his car out of the parking lot and got straight onto the main road. "Elena's changed" he commented with a sigh of relief. "She's not the same childish Elena she used to be" he murmured, remembering the old times.

"I'm surprised she called you though" Caroline admitted she had been shocked to see Stefan arrive at her and Elena' coffee meeting. She had been even more surprised when Elena told her that she'd invited Stefan herself wanting to soothe everything back to normal. Their breakup had been nasty and they had basically cut off all communication since then. Till now, that is. "Maybe she wants to rekindle her past high school love" Caroline teased with a hint of a smile on her face.

Stefan smiled, unknowingly, at that. "Maybe she does" he murmured quietly.

Caroline whipped her head to glare at him. "STEFAN SALVATORE!" she screeched loudly. "Are you still interested in Elena Gilbert?" she asked in shock and surprise.

Stefan shrugged guiltily.

As much as Caroline wanted to be happy for Stefan, she couldn't help but let her mind wander to Rebekah. She knew the other blonde had some feelings for Stefan. "So you don't have anyone else in mind?" she asked, curiously.

"Well, there is this one girl…" Stefan said mysteriously as he parked his car once again and they both got out.

"Well? Who is she?" Caroline asked, excitedly, thinking he was about to admit his interest in Rebekah.

Stefan smirked. "Blonde, tall, so fun, sometimes extremely bossing…" he listed off and Caroline nodded, fitting all these descriptions in Rebekah's traits. "She's also a nut job most of the time and I don't know why but she's my best friend" he joked which caused Caroline to stop and bump into him.

"Seriously!" she groaned out loud at being played by him. "I'm going to kill you" she hissed playfully.

Stefan smiled with an evil glint in his eyes before he swooped down and picked her up in his arms, ignoring her flailing and cries of surprise. "Not if I get you first" he joked, moving towards her apartment door and ringing the bell with Caroline still laughing in his arms.

Not two minutes later, the door opened and Rebekah came face to face with her best friends who looked far _too close _to each other for her comfort. She gave them an icy glare before crossing her arms over her chest.

"Well well what do we have here?"

Stefan dropped Caroline from his arms on the look Rebekah was giving them. He'd seen far too many girlfriends giving him _that _look when he'd been hanging with Caroline. So he didn't need to see it twice to know what it meant.

_War. _


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

**A/N: I am back and too happy because of the Klaroline interaction in the recent episodes. It's abundantly clear that Klaus still loves Caroline. But why do I feel like Klaus' goodbye left like a REAL forever GOODBYE! If Julie Plec is going to do it like this, I'm not taking it. :'( **

**Anyways, hope you're all doing well and let me know what you think of this chapter. **

"You're such a jerk!" Caroline exclaimed as she stood up and brushed off her clothes, smiling as her roommate opened the door. "Don't let him in, Bekah. My bum's gonna be sore for a week" she grumbled as she walked inside her apartment followed by Stefan who was laughing uncontrollably and Rebekah who was quiet.

"Well, it's your fault. If only you'd stop eating so much _lunch _you wouldn't get so heavy" he mocked, trying to ease out the tension in the room. He could sense something was wrong with Rebekah, judging from how silent she was.

Caroline glared him and poked her tongue out at him.

"You were there too?" Rebekah asked, raising her eyebrow in surprise.

Stefan smirked at that. "I wish. It was only Caroline and her- he stopped when Caroline jabbed him in the ribs with her elbow –_your _brother" he finished with a short laugh. "I wonder how that happened though. I mean last I knew you were going to meet up with Elena and then Klaus…" he teased, making a confused face. "How _did _that happen?" he asked, faking suspicion.

Caroline rolled her eyes at Stefan's exaggeration. "Well, Rebekah's family happens to be very persuasive. I wonder where they get that from?" she teased, looking at Rebekah who was looking far too annoyed. "Klaus asked me to have lunch with him after the interview. I said okay but only because- she was going to explain herself but Stefan cut her off.

"Only because you have a huge crush on Rebekah's brother" Stefan guessed mockingly.

Caroline scowled at him in return as she toed off her shoes and sat on the couch. "_No" _she deadpanned. "He was working and then he asked me for lunch. When I said no, he seemed so disheartened and he was gonna go back to work… So I said why not?" she explained, groaning at how weird the situation felt when she explained it.

"Every boy feels disappointed when he's turned down, Care" Stefan laughed as he came to sit down in the living room but he remained cautious to sit away from Caroline under Rebekah's watchful gaze. "Are you going to go out with every guy you know then?" he questioned, knowingly.

Caroline sighed but before she could answer, Rebekah cut in. "Nik's not just another guy, though" she defended lightly, sitting next to Caroline. "And what's your problem if he's asking Caroline out to lunch? Afraid of some competition?" she questioned, looking far too innocent.

But the harshness and the challenge in her voice shocked Caroline. Stefan may not be able to detect it but Caroline could see right through her best friend.

"Hardly" Stefan replied, confidently. "And, eww Bekah! I would never want to… _date _her" he added, making a disgusted face. "No offence, Care but I've seen you in your diapers"

Caroline poked her tongue out at him. "Same same" she replied, shrugging.

Rebekah still kept a suspicious eye on the two of them but relaxed for the moment.

"I'm serious, though, both of you" Stefan suddenly spoke up. "Be careful with Klaus. He's not someone to mess around with" he warned them.

Rebekah rolled her eyes. "He's my brother, Stefan" she said, exasperated. "Despite how _detached_ he looks, he has a heart deep down" she mocked. "And Caroline if you decide to pursue this… _relationship _of yours with him, I'm sure he'd keep you pretty happy" she added, slyly.

"Whoa! Guys…" Caroline interrupted, feeling this was getting way too serious. "I just had lunch with him. It doesn't mean anything. Besides, I don't think I have time for a relationship right now" she said with a derisive snort. "And now I'm going to say good day because I'm not coming out of my room till dinner" she explained, before standing up and kissing Stefan's cheek.

"Where are you going?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"To study. We have finals coming up if you have forgotten" she answered back without looking at him and then they heard the door of her room shut.

"This conversation isn't done, Care" Rebekah called out before turning to Stefan. "Well, Caroline's gone. I suppose you'll be leaving too now" she said, dryly.

Stefan frowned. "Hey, what's wrong?" He asked, grabbing her wrist when she tried to pull away.

"Nothing"

"I know by the look in your eyes that something's wrong. What is it, Beks?" he asked, worriedly.

"Do you like her?" she asked, bluntly, with a suffering sigh.

Stefan let out a nervous chuckle at that. "Do I _like_… her?" he repeated, shaking his head. "She's my friend. Just as you are" he replied with an easy smile.

It took all of Rebekah's willpower not to scream at him or tear up when he called her _friend. _Did it hurt or what?

She smiled back at him, meekly. "Glad to hear that" she said, shakily.

"Rebekah" Stefan said, quietly, looking at her. "Do you want…? _Klaus and Caroline?_" he asked, hesitantly, cringing at the sound.

She nodded slowly. "I won't lie. My brother is interested in her" she answered calmly. "And I do wish only the best for both of them. Nik deserves someone good like Caroline and she needs someone who will put her first" she explained, softly. "And Nik will _always _put her first" she assured him, firmly.

"Just don't pressurize her. Okay?" he requested, pleadingly. "She's been through too much in so little time… Just let her go at it with her own pace"

Rebekah rolled her eyes at him, discreetly. If Caroline would go at her own pace, she'd be stuck for eternity having her brother at her back. "Of course" she lied, convincingly. Stefan really had no idea how important freedom was to her.

Klaus sighed impatiently as he searched for his tie. He had a flight to catch in about 2 hours and he couldn't find his favorite tie. It had been a gift from Rebekah (and call him superstitious but it was his lucky tie and he always took it with him for crucial business meetings.)

Frustrated, he called out his housekeeper. "Are you sure that _all_ my clothes are back from the drycleaner?" he asked, briskly.

The poor woman rightfully looked frightened. "Yes sir" she said, hesitantly. "I put them i-in your closet, m-myself" she stammered, nervously.

"Clearly not all of them" he hissed back, shoving clothes forcefully on his bed. "My navy blue tie is missing. I need it" he growled, looking around impatiently for it.

"I'll look for it, Mr. Mikaelson. It must be here" the woman said, jumping to run to his closet to look for it while he answered his phone.

"What?" he growled on the phone.

"Niklaus, why are you not at the office, yet?" Elijah's calm voice came through.

Klaus muttered under his breath. "I'll be joining you directly at the airport, brother. Seems like I have some things to take care of" he answered, vaguely.

"What could be more important than our deal with the Crescent Company?" Elijah asked, perplexed. "And please tell me Niklaus that it is not terrorizing Rebekah" he added, peevishly.

Klaus rolled his eyes. "I'm not terrorizing Rebekah. I'm only looking out for her" he defended himself. "And right now, I'm at my apartment looking for something very dear to me so if you're quite done with your interrogation, brother, I'd like to get back to finding it" he said hotly before ending the call.

Rebekah rolled her eyes and huffed impatiently as she threw her phone back on the bed, carelessly. She didn't know if she could stand Klaus being in the same city or even country as hers for long. And to top it off, Elijah thought it was her _duty _to help him out whenever he was in a problem.

His problems being extremely prissy and childish made her even angrier.

Just as she was about to exit her apartment to head over to her brother's, she called out loudly to her roommate. "Caroline, I'm going over to Nik's. He's in a bit of trouble. Be back soon." With that said, she was out of the apartment without even hearing a reply.

Fifteen minutes later, Caroline huffed in annoyance as she filled a washing bowl with cold water and detergent and let it sit at the side while she spread a navy blue tie on the isle and sprinkled some powder over it. After placing a piece of cotton over it, she pressed it tightly and ironed it quickly before washing the tie to get rid of the stain.

Ever in her life, if she'd been told she would be washing a Mikaelson's tie, she would've laughed at the person's face after throwing a glass of chilling water over his/her head.

But here she was, washing and ironing Klaus Mikaelson's _stupid _tie (which apparently had great emotional value for him) because her roommate was a bitch.

Rebekah had called her fifteen minutes after leaving to search for Klaus' tie which he apparently left behind someday. Her guess was it was the day he had lunch with her. The proof of that said lunch was on his tie in the form of a stupid, stubborn stain. She didn't even know how it got there in the first place because she was sure he'd taken it off before sitting down to eat.

Anyways, she'd been assigned the duty to clean and iron it before Klaus came to pick it up from her. Rebekah may have bribed her with a pair of Louboutins she'd had her eyes on _for months _but that still didn't make her any less of an amazing best friend.

She ironed it and placed it neatly on her bed while she waited for it to dry. Once it was dry, she checked and had a smug smile on her face when the stain was nowhere to be seen.

Just as she finished texting Rebekah the good news, the voice of the doorbell rang in the apartment and she walked over to the main door, holding the tie in her hand.

She opened the door and caught sight of Klaus smirking at her, only this time she was returning his smug grin. "Good evening, love" he greeted, pleased to see his tie in her hand. "I see you've found my greatest treasure" he teased, eyeing the piece of cloth in her hand with relief.

"Yup" she said, 'p' popping at the end. "And you can call me savior as well since I'm pretty sure no dry cleaner would've been able to get rid of the stain you got on it" she boasted proudly.

Klaus smiled back, his dimples appearing. "Perhaps you should consider a change of career then" he answered back, teasingly.

Caroline rolled her eyes at that. "No thank you" she said, firmly before thrusting his tie in his hands. "These are certain talents that only you Mikaelsons are lucky enough to see" she joked before blurting out loud. "And maybe my husband, if I ever get married" she muttered, shrugging.

Klaus raised an eyebrow at that and mentally nodded that only his family would be able to take advantage of her _skills. _

"Well, I'm honored to be included in your little gang but may I ask another favor, love?" he asked, sweetly, looking at her with his innocent big eyes.

Caroline narrowed her eyes and looked at him suspiciously. "You can ask but I have the right to say no if I think it's too much" she offered, carefully.

Klaus smirked at that. _His smart girl. _He placed the tie around his collar and pointed towards it. "You've done me the honor of washing and ironing my tie. Will you please tie it for me, too?" he asked playfully looking at her.

Caroline let out a nervous chuckle. "Are you telling me that … _Klaus Mikaelson_… doesn't know how to tie a knot?" she asked, incredulously.

He shrugged, a little embarrassed. "Believe it or not, sweetheart, but this is more Elijah's department"

Taking mercy on him, she raised her hands and straightened the tie for him. "Alright. But you should keep in mind that you can call out for a favor in return because technically you're in my debt now" she said, playfully, trying to ignore the awkwardness of the situation which only increased as he slowly kept inching closer to her.

"I'd be willing to repay you. Should you ever want me to" he whispered back, huskily, taking advantage of her good mood and the situation.

Caroline gulped inaudibly as she hurried to fix his tie. "I've already made a deal with Rebekah but thanks for offering. I'll keep it in mind" she rushed out before pulling the knot and tightening his tie. "There!" she exclaimed with relief as she took a step back.

But Klaus wasn't having it as he grasped her waist and pulled her forward until they were nose to nose. Her hands automatically landed on his chest and before she could stop him, he leant forward and placed a wet kiss on the corner of her mouth which looked more like a kiss to the cheek.

Although, it was _far too intimate _than that.

"Thank you for your help, _Caroline" _he purred with a roguish grin on his face. "I'll see you soon, sweetheart" he whispered and moved away, leaving Caroline feeling cold all over.

"Goodbye, Klaus" she said, quietly as she gaped in shock.

Once Elijah met Klaus at the airport, he knew something was up. The way his brother came smiling and grinning, touching and retouching his tie every so often, it was clear his brother's happiness was too much to contain.

As happy as Elijah was for his younger brother, he needed to know the cause of it too. Hence, the reason he sent a quick message to Rebekah to find out what it was. Her answer, though, unexpected but it was also worrisome.

_Caroline. _

As far as he remembered, that was Rebekah's one and only best friend and now-a-days, college roommate. He didn't know what his brother's obsession with the poor girl was but he'd definitely have to talk to his brother.

Stefan sighed loudly as he relaxed in his bed and brought his hands behind his head.

Meeting up with Elena hadn't been part of his plan. To be completely honest, his plan was to avoid her. After their breakup, he'd been devastated and his life felt like a mess without her until Caroline pulled him out of his haze and pushed him to get back to normal.

He'd started meeting and hanging out with Caroline and Rebekah and had begun to see Rebekah in a different light, despite her flaws and imperfections.

But then _she_ had called him. Asked him to come out for lunch and he had been unable to say no after she'd pleaded with him. A lunch that he'd thought would've been awkward was anything but. It was perfect. It reminded him of all the good old times they spent at the grill.

And suddenly the thought of reconciliation didn't seem too far stretched to him.

And he was sure this time their relationship wouldn't fail because Elena had changed. And so had he. They were both now more mature and much more confident and sure about what they wanted. Elena had outgrown her bad boy fantasy after dating Damon on and off for a year or two and Stefan was willing to move forward from that.

But then the thought of Rebekah struck him and left him feeling guilty and uncomfortable.

He groaned loudly and buried his face in his hands. How had he become so confused and lost?

_Maybe he needed to take some advice from Caroline. Surely, she would be unbiased between two of her friends. _

Klaus casually loosened his tie as he checked into his hotel room. He quickly changed from his suit to his sleeping clothes and sat down on the bed. Their first meeting with the Crescent Company had gone well. It was a slight inconvenience that they were in the America while the company they were dealing with was in London.

But he figured he could stay in London for a week or two.

He grabbed his cell phone from the bedside and began to type in the number that he'd begun to learn by heart. Just as he was about to press the dial button, he stopped.

Maybe calling her wouldn't be the best thing to do right now. He figured he'd let her focus on her finals and then move forward with his plans to 'woo' her.

But that didn't stop him from texting her.

_My meeting went amazing. Thank you for your help, love. – Klaus_

The reply came five minutes later and made him smile.

_Yeah, I'm pretty sure they agreed because of how perfect your tie looked. Not a problem but that doesn't mean you disturb me again. Some people have to study and get good grades so that they can get jobs for a good living. – Caroline_

He could almost imagine Caroline's sarcastic voice in his head and chuckled at her response.

_I'd be more than happy to tutor, should you want to check in your favor. – Klaus_

Her reply came earlier this time.

_Nice try. But I'm keeping it safe for something big. - Caroline_

Before he could reply, his phone beeped again.

_Now, let me study. I'm too far behind because of __**someone's**__ cleaning errands. – Caroline_

_Good night, sweetheart. I'll see you when I get back. – Klaus_

_Thank you, Mr. Mikaelson, for your graciousness to let me sleep. – Caroline_

He groaned at the mental image she'd, unknowingly, painted for him and rubbed his hands over his face. How was he ever going to sleep now?

Caroline Forbes was going to be the death of him.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

**A/N: I'm back! And hopefully it isn't too late… *offers cute, dimpled smile* :")  
Leave your questions and I promise to answer them. About any of my stories, I'll answer them 100% truthfully. **

"Okay!" Caroline announced, cheerfully, as she placed her arms on both her best friend's shoulder and pulled them closer to her, squeezing herself between them. "Now that finals are _over_ and we all did well" she said, unable to help the grin on her face. After all, all the sleepless nights and her hard work had paid off. "It's time that we _party!" _

Rebekah rolled her eyes and shook her head. "What do you have planned?" she asked, without a doubt, knowing that the other blonde would have a whole list.

"We're going to the lake house!" she announced, happily, bouncing on her feet. "For the whole weekend. We leave tomorrow." She explained, firmly.

Stefan shrugged. "Alright. I'll pick you both up tomorrow in the morning" he offered, as they all headed towards his car.

Rebekah shook her head. "I can drive Caroline and me, there. You just reach there at time for once" she mocked him as she unlocked her car. "But the whole weekend seems hard. Nik's coming back and he wants to _hang out_" she said, using air quotes.

Stefan perked up at that. "Caroline's boyfriend is coming back?" he teased, eliciting a smirk from Rebekah and a groan from Caroline. "I'm sure Caroline can convince him to let you go" he added, teasingly, dodging Caroline's playful punch.

"Seriously, guys. We need- no – we _deserve _this break. Besides, I've made the plan so make your excuses because we are going" she declared, firmly, placing her hands on her hips. "Today is your day off. Sleep, get drunk, eat… whatever. But don't be late tomorrow!" she warned, wagging her finger in Stefan's direction.

"Yes ma'am" he said, sarcastically, before opening the door of his car for the ladies.

After Stefan dropped them home, Rebekah immediately went off to change and then proceeded out for some retail therapy while Caroline stayed at home and decided to sort out their mess of a living room and then to catch up on some much needed sleep.

Just as she finished changing her clothes and got into bed, her phone vibrated besides her. She picked it up to see a text message from Klaus.

It had become a habit between them ever since he'd left that he'd send a message and then she'd send a sarcastic reply and their meaningless messages would form a proper conversation. He had even given her tips about how to attempt her exam and how to tackle certain problems. She'd been grateful and honestly, in her mind, she hoped he was doing the same with Rebekah.

But she also knew that he was showing some major interest in her. If his flirty messages were anything to go by.

_How'd it go? No. Let me guess, so good that you're tempted to take me out to lunch… - Klaus_

Caroline laughed softly at his response and she could totally imagine his voice ringing in her ears as she began to type.

_I haven't lied before so don't make me do it now. – Caroline _

Before his reply came, she added another short message.

_It was amazing. So relieved finals are over. Thanks for your help. – Caroline _

She bit her lip and wringed her fingers as she waited for his reply. As soon as her phone vibrated, she grabbed it and read his message, eagerly.

_I'm glad to be of service. How did Rebekah's exam go? – Klaus _

_You haven't talked to her? *enter shocked and disapproving face* - Caroline _

Surely, he must've been joking. He had taken the time to message her but not his own baby sister? She was sure he was just messing with her.

_Well, I tried to call but she's busy ignoring me and this time, I haven't even done anything! – Klaus _

Caroline shook her head at that before she began typing.

_Okay, not your fault. She's gone for shopping. I wouldn't expect her to attend my phone call either. – Caroline _

_P.S. Her exam went so good that she said, "She deserves a rather heavy retail therapy" – Caroline _

Within seconds, Klaus' went reply came through which made her sigh, a little dejectedly.

_I'm assuming yours went just as good. Why aren't you with her for said 'rather heavy retail therapy'? – Klaus _

Caroline bit her lip, contemplating how to tell him. She chose to add a lighter side to the issue.

_I wish I had a millionaire/billionaire brother whose credit card I could cash out. If only just to annoy him. Sadly, I don't. – Caroline_

Cringing at how personal it sounded, she quickly added.

_Come to think of it, I could've gotten a brother like Kol, so I guess being an only child isn't all that bad. Lol. – Caroline _

When Klaus read her message, he felt like driving over there at the moment to drag her to the shopping malls and to lay everything at her feet. But he refrained from doing anything too major and consoled himself that it was only a matter of time before Caroline would get to experience all of the good things of being with a Mikaelson.

Like the power.

Money was no issue and she'd come to realize that after she would be introduced into his world.

_Shopping with Rebekah is a misery I wouldn't wish upon even my worst enemy and you, sweet Caroline, are far from it. – Klaus _

Klaus waited for Caroline's reply and it took her a couple of minutes to reply this time. He was sensing some reluctance and unease.

_What will it take for you to stop flirting with me? – Caroline_

He grinned, wildly. And so she had taken the bait. He had been waiting for her to crack under his flirtatious comments and now she finally had.

_A date._

He replied simply letting the suspense set in before he clarified.

_Just one date and if you're still not convinced, I'll try to stop. – Klaus_

Caroline rolled her eyes at his response. Way to make her feel like a teenage girl. She'd already lived out her bad boy fantasy by dating Damon for a few weeks and she _never _wanted to go there ever again. EVER!

But Klaus… He seemed so much more dangerous, exciting, arrogant and fun all at the same time.

Deciding to take a leap of faith, she typed and sent it before her courage faded away.

_You won't try. You will stop. – Caroline _

_You can have your date but only after this weekend. Promise? – Caroline _

Klaus frowned but he was too blinded by his happiness to notice her cunning promise.

_You have my word – Klaus_

Caroline grinned. He took the bait.

_Great! Rebekah, Stefan and I are off for a break this weekend. We'll all see you on Monday. ;) – Caroline _

Klaus gaped at the screen of his cell phone as he figured it out too late. _That _girl and her audacity to send him a wink after she'd tricked him into letting Bekah off for the whole weekend.

_Nicely done, love. I'm almost proud. – Klaus_

Her reply came only seconds later this time and he could imagine her smug face at that moment.

_Learned from the best. Now I have to sleep. Bye, Klaus! – Caroline_

_Sweet dreams, love. – Klaus _

He typed the last message and sighed deeply. One for him, one for Caroline. She would always keep him on his toes. That he was sure off.

Sighing he sat back and called for his housekeeper to prepare tea for him and his brother. He had gotten back a day early, hoping to surprise Elijah and Rebekah (_mainly only Caroline, if he was being honest) _but Elijah had known beforehand, somehow, and Caroline had easily bailed Rebekah out.

Twenty minutes later, Klaus almost wished his brother hadn't come. He could sense that Elijah was just itching to say something to him judging by the way he was eyeing him for the past fifteen minutes.

Unable to take it anymore, Klaus burst at it. "Okay. Out with it, Elijah" he snapped, irately. "What is it?" he asked, shaking his head.

Elijah didn't waste a second in denying anything and simply sat straighter, placing the teacup back on the table. "I've heard you're… _interested _in Rebekah's friend… Carmella, is it?" he asked, feigning forgetfulness.

Klaus rolled his eyes. "_Caroline_" he corrected which almost came out like a growl. "And if you're determined to act as if you don't remember her Elijah, the least you can do is try harder" he pointed out, miserably.

"Alright then I suppose we should get straight to the point" the elder Mikaelson replied without getting too annoyed. "What are you intentions with Miss Forbes?" he asked with a hint of the smile on his face.

"My _intentions _are… none of your business" Klaus answered back coolly, not liking why suddenly everyone thought they had the right to interrogate him. Dammit! He was Niklaus Mikaelson. Answerable to no one.

Elijah sighed. "You can trust me when I say that I have absolutely zero percent interest in your _personal _life Niklaus, unlike our sister" he started, curtly. "But I must warn you to not to do something that might ruin her and Rebekah's friendship"

As Elijah finished his rant, Klaus nodded but he couldn't help the inward shrug he gave.

_Too late maybe, _he thought dryly.

Once Rebekah came back home, she all but dragged Caroline out to show her all the new things she had bought. The younger blonde sat on the couch trying to keep her eyes open while Rebekah stood in the center of the shopping bags and the mess she'd created in the living.

Caroline sighed inwardly. _So much for cleaning the apartment. _

"What do you think about those?" Rebekah asked as she threw a rather heavy shopping bag at Caroline's face.

Caroline scowled as it hit her before looking inside. There were three dresses inside and a pair of shoes. One was a royal blue dress which seemed rather form fitting from the looks of it. Definitely giving off a kind of sexy yet elegant look.

The second one was a gorgeous white one with a brown belt in the middle. She fell in love with it instantly.

The last one was a short yellow dress with leaf patterns on it. It was a pretty dress but didn't really seem like Rebekah's style.

Just as she peeked inside the box and found the shoes she had been eyeing for months, she turned her narrowed and curious gaze at Rebekah who was trying to act cool.

"What is this?" she asked, suspiciously.

Rebekah shrugged. "Nothing. I just saw some stuff that you might like and brought it for you" she said, shaking her head.

"I can't accept this stuff, you know it" Caroline replied, resignedly.

"Just consider it a gift and say thank you" she said back, dismissively.

"Rebekah" Caroline said, putting aside the gifts. "No"

"Yes, Caroline" the other blonde answered stubbornly.

But Caroline kept shaking her head, determinedly. "I can't accept this. It's too expensive!" she cried out in frustration.

"Why do we have to keep going through this every time?" Rebekah asked, tiredly.

Caroline nodded furiously. "Yes _why?_" she asked, placing her hands on her hips. "You know what impressions gifts like this give off and you know I don't like this" she told her friend, resisting the urge to smack her friend.

"I know you're not a gold digging bitch Caroline!" Rebekah almost yelled, angrily. "_Bloody hell, _why do you think I only have one friend?" she questioned, sitting down on the couch heaving a sad sigh.

Caroline immediately felt bad for her friend. She knew that Rebekah had… _few _friends and all because she was rich _and the sister of Klaus Mikaelson. _People didn't like to see her for the person she was but only for the money in her bank account.

She sat down beside her friend and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "You don't have _one _friend" Caroline teased, eliciting a playful nudge from her friend. "Kidding, kidding" she said, quickly. "Look, its not about the number of friends okay? It's about how special you are in their eyes" she explained in her mother chick fashion. "See I love you, even Enzo did a little bit and so does Stefan"

Rebekah scoffed at the Stefan part. "I'm not looking for pity friends" she said, offended.

"Hey!" Caroline interjected. "Stefan and Enzo aren't pity friends. They really do care about you" she said, looking at Rebekah like she was crazy.

"Yeah Stefan clearly does" Rebekah replied sarcastically. "I've seen the way he looks at you Caroline. He'll never look at me the same way." Her voice came out harsher and sadder than she meant it to be.

"What?" Caroline gasped out. "You're crazy Rebekah. Stefan… He's not into me. Not like you think" she said, shaking her head in disbelief.

Rebekah rolled her eyes. "Whatever you say" she replied, clearly not believing her friend.

"And just so you know, Stefan happens to like you very much" Caroline continued as if Rebekah hadn't even spoken in between. "Why would you doubt his feelings for you?" she questioned, turning to look at her friend.

She sighed. "I've been really open with my feelings for him but I guess he doesn't feel the same way" she shrugged but Caroline could detect the hurt in her friend's eyes.

Caroline perked up instantly as an idea came to her. "I have an idea" she said, her face lighting up like a firework.

But before she could say anything, Rebekah shook her head. "Your ideas are the worst" she refused profusely, shaking her head. "Bloody hell _No" _she said, crossing her arms over her chest.

Caroline groaned. "Just hear me out, okay?" she pleaded, showing Rebekah her puppy eyes.

"Fine" Rebekah huffed, leaning closer to her friend.

By the end of it, Caroline had a smile on her face but Rebekah still seemed dubious about the plan. "Are you absolutely sure you're okay with this?" Rebekah asked, cautiously.

Caroline rolled her eyes. "Of course I am. Besides you'll be thanking me later" she goaded, proudly. "There's absolutely nothing that can go wrong from here"

Rebekah scoffed. "Famous last words" she muttered before dodging the pillow her friend threw her way.

Klaus couldn't help but let his mind wander off to Caroline. He didn't know why but he felt drawn to see her. It disgusted and amused him to the same extent. He hadn't acted like this even in high school.

He sighed, loudly. He would figure _that _out later. Right now he only wanted to go to her and be near her. But he knew she was _off _with Rebekah and Stefan. He didn't know where although a more curious part of him wanted to know. But he decided that if he knew, he'd probably head over there after her.

So he let her have her little weekend off.

That, however, didn't mean that he couldn't visit her apartment.

It would also give him an excellent chance to see how secure her apartment really was and maybe he could even snoop around for a little bit.

Caroline cringed as she kept her cell phone at a safe distance away from her ear. As expected two seconds later, Stefan's insistent questions came barreling through the line. She could even imagine her other best friend wincing from the other side.

"Caroline, what's going on? Why are you not coming?" Stefan asked, hurriedly on the other side of the phone. She could detect the worry and sadness in his voice and it made her feel bad for a little while before she steeled herself. This was for him.

"I told you Stefan. I feel sick. I can't" she lied, expertly, faking a weak voice.

She heard Stefan telling the same thing to Rebekah who acted surprised. _Good going, Bekah. _"Wait. You should've told us. We're coming back" he announced, shaking his head.

"NO! Wait" she called out hurriedly. "Listen, I'm going to be okay. Honestly, I'll be fine. You guys are already there. You are not coming back just for me" she said with finality.

She heard Stefan sigh. "Care, you're sick. Someone needs to be there to take care of you. We can come here next weekend" he tried to reason but Caroline wasn't having any of it.

"Stefan. I swear if I'm well, you'll probably see me tomorrow on my way to you guys" she said, mentally groaning at how stubborn her friend was. Why couldn't he understand that alone time with Rebekah was going to be good for him?

She did, however, feel bad for Elena. The poor girl was still interested in Stefan and if Rebekah and Stefan ever got together, Elena would lose her chance. But as she reasoned in her mind, Elena could always get together with Damon and she'd had her chance with Stefan but Rebekah had only ever dated a handful of guys.

"Care, hello, are you there?" she snapped back when she heard Stefan's voice pulling her back.

"Yeah. I'm here" she muttered, suddenly feeling like her plan maybe wasn't too fair. She shook it off. _Anything for her best friend_. "Look Stef, April said she'd come over to look after me" she lied, hoping her neighbor wouldn't talk to Stefan. "I'll be okay. You'll probably see me there with you guys tomorrow"

It was the last sigh that made her smile. Stefan was definitely not going to argue anymore. All she wanted for them was to have a good weekend, together so the both of them could resolve all their issues and get on with it!

If she would be there, the environment would be platonic and friendly. But with just the two of them, it seemed more like a romantic getaway.

After reassuring Stefan a billion times that she'd be fine, Caroline got off the phone and huffed as she plopped down on the couch. With Rebekah and Stefan gone, she didn't have anything to do. Sighing, she grabbed her laptop and cuddled into the blanket as she began watching her favorite series.

"Caroline's not coming" Stefan announced, feeling defeated as he slumped his shoulders.

Rebekah pretended to act surprised which was hard since she wasn't one for dramatics. That was more of Caroline's agenda. "Stubborn girl" she muttered. "Don't worry about her Stefan. She'll be alright. I'll make sure of it" she said as she picked up her phone.

Stefan frowned and looked up. "Who are you texting?" he asked, flabbergasted.

"Relax. I'm only asking Nik to check up on her. To see if she needs anything. Medicines, soup or anything" she replied innocently as she tapped away on her cell phone.

Stefan seemed hesitant. "I don't think she will appreciate that" he answered uncomfortably.

The other blonde only snorted. "And we don't _appreciate_ her informing us of her decision like this"

Klaus frowned as he placed his phone back into his pocket and silently placed the key inside the lock. He quickly slipped inside after scanning his surroundings. The house, itself, was pitch black inside which made him frown.

According to Rebekah, Caroline was home and _supposedly _sick.

Honestly, to him it seemed like just another little façade of Caroline and Rebekah because he was sure if Caroline was _actually _sick, they would've never left her alone.

Caroline was so absorbed in watching her favorite TV series on her laptop that she barely noticed the light entering inside the dark house from the main door until she heard a faint click of the lock. Her eyes widened and she paused the episode before quickly standing up.

Instead of calling out like a normal person would, she silently hurried to the opposite wall, leaning against it as she picked up the closest thing to her. _Her favorite vase. _

She was tempted to put it back down but then she mentally scolded herself. _Shut up Caroline! You can get any vase later. If you're alive. _

Cursing herself, she bit her lip as she realized she had left her phone on the couch so she couldn't even call the cops to arrest the thief… _or serial killer _or whoever it was. Grasping the vase tighter, she lifted it above her head and brought it down as soon as the person came in view.

However, he was vigilant enough and quickly grabbed the vase before it smashed into his head and grabbed her arm pulling her into his chest.

"Shh! Shh! It's me" he whispered in her ear, pulling her back even closer to his front as he gently brought his other hand to her after placing the vase down. He wrapped both his arms around her waist and spun her around, pulling her to him. The movement caused her to crash into him and _his sensitive areas _which almost made him groan.

Caroline remained frozen until she bumped into him again and harder this time. "Klaus" she gasped out in shock before it turned into annoyance and anger. She punched his chest with her tiny fist but by the look of amusement on his face she was sure, he wasn't even affected even though her fist was throbbing.

"You _jerk! _I could've _killed _you!" she shouted at him in frustration as she tried to punch him again after he simply wrapped his arms around her waist and looked on with mirth and amusement dancing in his eyes.

He raised an eyebrow at her violent behavior before quickly getting tired of her tiny fists and grabbing them in one hand. "I think that's a tad overdramatic, no?" he teased as he continued inching closer to her.

"Overdramatic?" she questioned, affronted but before she could continue, she looked down and saw how close they were. "What are you doing here?" she asked while pulling back and thankfully, he let her go.

"I've been told to look after you while Rebekah and Stefan are gone" he said as he moved inside and sat comfortably on the couch she was previously using. He glanced at her laptop screen and frowned when he saw her watching some television show. "I thought you were sick" he commented, suspiciously looking up at her.

Caroline glared him before faking a cough into her palm. "There" she deadpanned. "I'm sick. Now leave" She said, standing her ground.

"Why so hostile, sweetheart?" he mocked as he got comfortable, leaning his legs on her coffee table. _A habit she hated. _

"First of all, get your legs off my table" she hissed, placing her hands on her hips. "Second of all- she was interrupted by a thick voice. "_Sir?" _she turned to her side to see an elderly man in a suit coming inside her apartment.

"That's alright. Come and put them on the counter" Klaus said, easily, taking charge.

The man did as told before looking towards Klaus. "Anything else, Sir?" he asked but Klaus shook his head. "No. I'll call if I need anything" he said but kept his eyes on her and watched as the man walked away.

"Who was that?" Caroline asked.

"My driver" he replied, easily, with a hint of a smirk on his face. "I brought soup for you" he gestured towards the bowls and containers on the kitchen isle.

Caroline's stance relaxed at that but she didn't get too softened by it. "Why did you sneak in like a thief?" she asked cautiously.

Klaus chuckled at that. "I don't think entering with a key is what a thief would've done" he said, pulling out a key from his inner jacket pocket. "But yes, I was quiet thinking you were asleep"

"Well, thanks for the soup- she was trying to get him to leave but as if he sensed her he smiled broadly before stretching his arms behind his head.

"Before you kick me out, sweetheart, I have to tell you that I can't leave until you finish the soup and well, until _I'm _sure that you're alright" he informed her, too smugly. "So I suggest you sit down and we can continue watching- he glanced at her laptop's screen again before making an exaggerated '_Aaah_' sound- Game of thrones" he said looking at her with a devilish glint in his eyes.

Caroline glared him as she came to sit down next to him, leaving the space of one person between them.

Klaus smirked, smugly, inching closer before she pointed her warning finger at him.

He remained self-satisfied, though, and raised an eyebrow. "Are you alright, love?" he questioned with such concern. "You seem a bit flushed" he commented, sarcastically before placing his hand on her forehead.

She slapped it away with a glare that could kill.

"Would you look at that? You do have a fever after all"

**A/N: That's the end of this chapter but since I'm late I'm giving out a hint for the next chapter. Klaroline watch Netflix and chill. ;) **


	8. NOTE

Hello, my darlings!  
Yes I am alive and kicking even if the world tries to bring me down. Lol.

So I woke up today to my boyfriend yelling in my ear that I've been nominated for the KC awards. I'd like to say, first of all, **THANK YOU SO MUCH! **

My lovely readers, your affection has never ceased to amaze me and it never will. All the gratitude I show for your love will never be enough because you've never let me down and I consider you all my family. :")

A lot of people told me not to get too attached to you all but you've proved them all wrong by showing your dedication and love.

Regardless of whether I win or not, I just want you to know that I am forever in your debt for all your support. Throughout my sickness and my bad days and my good days, you've all been there from the beginning and just like that, your messages and encouragements have given me strength to fight through and survive everything.

I have so much respect for each and every one of you who reviews. Even the negative reviews because they show me that, ultimate perfection can never be achieved.

Also, my reason for being AWOL was again my health and studies. I didn't notify anyone about it because I didn't want anyone to worry but I'm all good now. Good as new, hopefully. ;)

But I've been receiving everyone's messages and emails but I've been unable to respond. Thank you so much again for asking after me.

As for the updates, they are on their way and will be out in a couple of hours hopefully.

Go check out every one of the nominees and don't forget to vote. Everyone is loaded with talent and I'm in awe of their creativity.

Lastly, instead of spreading hate and disdain in a world where there's already so much cruelty and spite, show love and affection to everyone. A smile, a nice compliment or a kind gesture here or there to everyone you see or meet.

Lots of words and love,  
Anna xx


	9. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

**A/N: Sorry to pop up again but I need to explain some things. PLEASE READ BEFORE PROCEEDING FORWARD. **

**Some people were concerned why the Mikaelsons were so bossy and manipulative. I've tried to keep the characters very close to the show. I don't want to make major changes to their personalities and we've already established that the Mikaelsons have the ability and habit of standing out and being more authoritative so I'm just trying to convey that by their actions. **

**In this chapter, you'll notice some similarities between Rebekah and Klaus. Similarly you'll notice Caroline and Stefan's characters evolve too along the future chapters. **

**And I promise, CAROLINE WILL NOT BE PREGNANT but Enzo will still play a very important part in the Klaroline relationship. This is the biggest hint I could give. No more. **

**One last thing, I'm not a slave guys. Writing isn't like breathing. It's a fun activity that I do only when I enjoy it. I don't force myself to write when I'm not feeling it. Please stop leaving disrespectful comments. It doesn't make me want to update any faster. **

**And when I'm asking for reviews or putting a specific 'review quota' it isn't literal or serious. *Cue eyeroll* I thought everyone knew and everyone does know except for someone who chose to call me pathetic or a whore. **

**Anyways, love to everyone out there. No need to spread hate when this world is already so depressing and spiteful. It's actually our duty to be happy and to spread joy. **

Stefan gazed at the fireplace in front of him, anxiously. He couldn't rest even for a minute knowing that Caroline was away and most importantly, sick. Something about the whole scenario seemed mildly confusing and suspicious to him but he couldn't figure out for the life of him what was going on.

Sick or not, Caroline had never been one to back out of a lake house trip.

Rebekah glared at the back of Stefan's head as she tightly grasped the mugs in her hands. She had hoped that without Caroline, Stefan would've been a little more attentive to her and maybe they could push their relationship a bit forward but it seemed like their plan was backfiring.

With a determined nod, though, she brought a slight smirk on her face and walked forward. She wasn't going to let Caroline's sacrifice go to waste.

She sat right next to Stefan on the couch, much closer than she usually would have but it was now or never. "Here you go. I made some hot chocolate" she announced as she extended the mug of warm liquid towards him.

Stefan seemed startled as he saw how close she was. "Oh. Thanks" he said, taking the mug from her, in the process of which their fingers brushed together.

"You're thinking about Caroline aren't you?" Rebekah asked after a while as they both quietly sipped their beverages.

"Just worried" he replied, shortly.

Rebekah sighed. "I talked to Nik. He said they're watching Game of Thrones together so I can assume she's well enough" she joked lightly, knowing about Caroline's obsession with the gruesome show.

"That sounds like Caroline" he chuckled, relaxing a bit.

Rebekah bit her lip and hid her smirk before turning to him. _Time to begin. _"I know you didn't exactly come here to hang out with _me _but the least you can do is enjoy while we're here. I may not be Caroline but I don't think I'm that boring either" she joked with a small smile, trying to guilt trip him.

She bit her lip to see if it worked and voila, not two seconds later, Stefan's face was the image of shock and guilt. "Rebekah" he started. "No. That's not true. You know I love your company" he justified.

"Just not as much as hers?" she asked, with a raised eyebrow.

Stefan frowned placing his cup on the table in front of them before turning to her. "Hey" he said, placing his arm around her shoulders. "I didn't come here only to hang out with Caroline either" he told her evenly.

Rebekah's heart jumped at joy but she controlled it with a small smile.

"Are you finally admitting that you actually enjoy my company?" she teased, inching closer to him until she could feel her thigh almost shifting over to his.

"I've never denied enjoying your company" he said back, giving her a heart melting smile.

Rebekah beamed brightly. "Good, because you're stuck with me for the weekend" she replied before laying her head on his shoulder. He didn't even stiffen for a moment which made her inwardly sigh in relief.

At that moment, she sent a thousand 'thank you-s' to Caroline in her heart, side-by-side wondering how her brother was faring.

Klaus watched the scene in front of him with amusement and humor. He couldn't understand a word of what was going on in the show even after Caroline agreed to give him a brief summary of the past five seasons but he was simply clueless and to be honest, he found it rather pointless watching such a fictional show.

But he kept his opinions to himself after watching exactly how _sacred _the show was to Caroline.

And he didn't dare move so he didn't disturb Caroline who would probably kick him out after this.

But he wasn't all that bored if he was being very honest. He watched Caroline and the way she was so absorbed in the episodes. She barely even noticed that the space between them was almost nonexistent.

In the beginning, she had plugged her laptop into the flat screen TV so that they didn't have to necessarily sit so close and he could tell she had purposely stretched her legs in the middle of the couch to push him over to the other side.

He had succumbed to his defeat. Momentarily.

Until she had started playing out the episodes and become completely engrossed in it, failing to notice how he inched closer and closer until he was right next to her. It almost seemed as though she was sitting in between his legs. Wanting to see how far he could take it, he stretched his arm from behind her to her line of vision.

Caroline hit the pause button faster than lightning and whipped around to face him. The ends of her blonde hair hit Klaus right in his face and he grinned widely at that, raising his hands in surrender.

"What do you think you're doing?" she asked, suspiciously, with narrowed eyes.

"What makes you think I'm doing anything?" he challenged with raised eyebrows and a smug look on his face. "I'm simply trying to help myself to some popcorn" he lied before taking a piece of it and popping it in his mouth.

She narrowed her eyes even further at him before pointing her finger at him and prodding his chest with it. "Listen here, Mikaelson" she started, dropping all politeness and formality. "I wasn't born yesterday. I know what you're trying to do" she sneered at him.

Klaus grinned. "Really?" he questioned, sarcastically. "Enlighten me, sweetheart. What am I trying to do?" he asked, arrogantly.

Knowing, he wouldn't listen like this, Caroline bit back her grin as an idea came to her. She leaned forward until she was right in front of his face. She could see the shock and surprise written clearly all over Klaus' face.

"Bring your arm around me one more time and I will bend it in such an angle that you won't ever be able to use it again" she whispered against his lips so that her warm breath fanned out against his face before she gave him a sickly sweet smile as if she hadn't just threatened to make his arm dysfunctional for the rest of his life.

"Violence" he murmured with an annoying grin plastered on his face. "I didn't know you were into that kind of stuff, love" he teased her, knowingly.

Caroline didn't even bat an eyelash at his flirtation although she couldn't stop the images that ran through her mind at his suggestion. She couldn't let him know that he affected her. Even if just a little bit.

"You're Rebekah's brother, Klaus, that's the only reason you're still inside my apartment" Caroline warned him lightly.

Klaus let out a scoff at that. "Not to be an arse but I'm the same brother whose money she used to get this apartment. Moreover, I have a key so you couldn't really kick me out" he replied easily.

"You're not being an _ass_" she said pointedly. "You'r_e already _an ass"

He placed his hand on his heart and faked hurt. "Ouch" he murmured. "I have got to say, that hurt" he answered, pouting. "Here I am. Trying to be a good person. Leaving everything else to look after you and here _you_ are, misjudging my intentions"

Even though, Caroline could detect the teasing hint in his voice, she really thought over his words and realized that he was, unfortunately, right to some extent. With a sigh, she turned to him. "Fine. Let's start over okay? But _don't_ push my limit" she said, resignation in her voice.

Klaus smirked widely before leaning in close, totally ignoring her rule. "I must say, this acquiescent behavior suits you" he had barely completed his sentence when he felt Caroline's elbow jab into his stomach but he only laughed it off as a deep pink blush stained Caroline's cheek and she continued the episode to fade away the awkward situation.

Rebekah knew it was now or never.

Either she could be brave and face her problem now or she could be a coward and let Stefan go.

As soon as she thought that, an image of Elena and Stefan jumped into her mind. Both of them smiling at each other, making 'lovey dovey' eyes.

_No. I can't let that happen. _

"Let's play a game" Rebekah suggested as she turned to face Stefan.

Stefan turned and raised an eyebrow. "A game? What game?" he questioned, cautiously. He'd played his fair share of games with Rebekah and Caroline and he knew not to trust these two little minxes when it came to playing _games. _

"Truth or tequila" she grinned. The game itself had been Caroline's invention after they had discovered her love for tequila.

Stefan rolled his eyes. "You know we're going to wake up tomorrow with a massive hangover right?" he asked with resignation in his voice.

Rebekah smiled brightly before shrugging. "Not like we have something important to do anyway" she said before jumping up to get the shot glasses and the tequila bottle.

"So, is this our thing?" Klaus asked cheekily, as he sat beside Caroline and poured wine into two _mugs _as Caroline had insisted there was no need for flutes when mugs could serve the same purpose.

Caroline rolled her eyes and snorted. "We don't have _a thing_" she replied straightforwardly, snatching up one mug which was filled.

Out of all the possibilities in the world, she had never imagined herself spending the first day of her vacations with Klaus Mikaelson. But deep in her heart, she was ready to admit that it wasn't just because he was Rebekah's brother that he was allowed inside. _Maybe _she enjoyed his teasing and attention a little bit.

Klaus playfully rolled his eyes while a dimpled smile remained firm on his face. "Whatever you say, sweetheart" he conceded.

They stayed quiet for a few moments, only the sound of the television in the background. "Can I ask you something?" Caroline asked, suddenly, turning to him.

Klaus raised an eyebrow, with a hint of a smile playing on his lips. "Only if I can ask you something in return." He said, smugly.

She rolled her eyes. "Why do you pretend in front of Rebekah as if you don't know of any of her… _extracurricular activities?_" Caroline asked, awkwardly.

Klaus didn't even blink in return. "Why do you think I'm pretending?" he countered.

Caroline scoffed. "A person as sharp as you doesn't miss anything" she answered back, confidently.

"I'll take that as a compliment" he teased, laughing at her annoyed expression.

"Oh come on! I'm serious" she said, crossing her arms over her chest.

Klaus sighed. "Honestly?" he half asked and continued when she nodded. "It's to keep her in line" he said but before Caroline could argue, he stopped her. "Or maybe it's the only way I know she'll keep in touch with me" he answered quietly, refusing to look at her.

He, himself, wasn't sure why he was sharing such personal information with her but he felt like he could trust her. Even though she was Rebekah's best friend and he hadn't exactly met her too long ago.

Ironically, he didn't trust Rebekah enough to share such information with her but he trusted her best friend.

He expected sympathy or pity from her but the reaction he got from her completely surprised him. He turned his head to see her head bent as she burst into laughter. Strangely, he found himself smiling and elated that she wasn't showing him pity.

"You have to be the most complex person I have ever met" she said, still laughing. "And that says a lot considering I live with your sister" she added as an afterthought.

"You're crushing my feelings, sweetheart" Klaus joked, lightly, feeling a bit sheepish.

Caroline sobered up at that statement because even though his tone was light and friendly, she could pick up on the slight discomfort. Clearly he wasn't used to sharing personal information with someone. "Rebekah adores you and I'm not just saying that because she's my best friend but because this is the truth" she started and watched as a small hint of a smile appeared on Klaus' face. "Even though you threaten her and she _threatens _you in return, she always thinks and worries about you the most. _Nik this, Nik that_" she told him. "And you know what; I can safely tell you that if you stop _bullying_ her constantly, she'll definitely start calling you more often" she ended with a smug look on her face when Klaus pouted at the part about the bullying.

"Do I really bully her?"

Klaus' question made Caroline laugh.

"Is that the only thing you got from all I said?" she asked, jokingly.

Klaus smiled a heartfelt smile and joined in, on her laughter before quieting down. "Thank you" he said, softly, with a slight nod.

"It will be pleasure if you let me watch another episode now" she said with a cunning smile on her face as she reached for the laptop. While she opened up the next episode, she could feel him coming closer to her as his front brushed her back as if she was almost sitting in his lap.

"Um, what are you doing?" she asked, her eyes going wide as she felt the steady beating of his heart on her back and the warmth of his chest. If she took a whiff in, she would only be able to take in his strong yet somehow comforting cologne.

"Shh! The episode's starting" he whispered huskily into her ear as he played the episode. Klaus could feel her gaze on the side of his face for a few seconds before she ultimately succumbed and looked away towards the laptop screen.

Maybe it wouldn't be so bad after all. Besides, no one was even there to witness them and their intimacy.

Somehow through the next forty minutes, they ended up _actually cuddling, _instead of just sitting close together, with Klaus' arm around Caroline as she leaned towards him. She was so close to him that she could feel the beat of his heart under her ear where she had leant her head on his chest.

By the time the episode ended, they were both so comfortable that they didn't even begin to move even as the credits on the screen rolled by.

It was only the shrill ringing of a phone that broke them out of the trance. Caroline only slightly got up as she continued looking at him as he picked up his phone.

Caroline took his distraction as a moment of relief. His gaze on her was always too intense _and _now she had the chance to observe him. She'd never looked closely enough but she could now see more of the minor details of his face.

Like how one or two of his unruly curls would always fall on his forehead and how his nose wasn't straight but had a little dip.

But what she noticed most was his eyes which weren't quiet dull as she believed them to be. They had little specks of blue and green in them, making him look so mesmerizing.

There were flaws on his face but somehow his imperfections made him even more beautiful. There were prominent frown lines on his forehead which she assumed were because of his anger (and the stick stuck up his ass since he was born)

She was so busy observing him that she didn't even notice when he ended his call and looked at her intensely. His eyes held a seriousness that she knew couldn't be faked.

"I have to leave"

Somehow that sentence dampened her mood. Maybe it was because of the loneliness that she'd been feeling for days. The feeling that only Klaus had been able to chase away.

Instead of asking him to stay, she forced a smile on her face. "Finally! I thought I'd be stuck with you here forever" she tried to joke, standing up hurriedly, and backing away from him as if he burned her.

She turned her back to him but she could hear him standing behind her as he straightened his clothes. She couldn't look at him knowing that hours ago she was the one who wanted him gone but now she was beginning to feel lonely.

"Well, you know where the door is…" she mumbled quietly, moving forward. But she was unable to.

She frowned and was about to turn around when she felt a tug on her hand and she spun around into his chest with the force of his pull.

"I have to go Caroline" the words rolled off his tongue so smoothly that Caroline felt envious of his accent. Damn it! Why did he have to be so perfect?

_She is so beautiful, _Klaus thought as he stared intensely into Caroline's sparkling blue eyes filled with so many emotions. Even though, Caroline tried to hide her true feelings, right now, Klaus could see every emotion clearly on her face and the only one that shone through the storm of emotions was sadness.

"Yeah, well..." Caroline started speaking but a stray strand of hair fell over on her face.

Before he could stop himself, he leaned toward and gently tucked the lock of hair behind her ear. He leaned forward; keeping his arms wrapped around her and brought his mouth right next to her ear. "I'm leaving, _sweetheart_" he whispered huskily, deliberately letting his voice go coarse. "You can either stop me or I'm gone" he added for extra measure. He could almost feel her twitching in his arms.

He leaned back and watched the varying emotions run across her face. He was sure she wasn't going to stop him and inwardly sighed before starting to let her go, slowly. He hadn't even let her out of his arms completely when he felt a pressure behind his head and before he knew it, his lips made contact with something soft.

He opened his eyes and saw that it was in fact Caroline's hand that had pulled his neck towards her.

He remained in shock for too long because Caroline pulled back. "Either you kiss me back or _I'm _going" Caroline whispered.

Before she had even completed her sentence, Klaus pulled her more tightly towards himself and smashed her lips with his own. He took her gasp of surprise as the perfect opportunity to slide his tongue inside her mouth. He massaged her tongue with his as his hands tightened around her even further. He slid one of his hands up to her hair and gripped it tightly, pulling it slightly.

Hearing her moan into their kiss, he smirked.

His smirk turned into a groan when he felt Caroline's hands slide into his hair. She pulled his hair just like he pulled hers.

His shock at her boldness turned into a challenge as they both broke apart for air. As Caroline panted for air, Klaus took the opportunity to move forward until Caroline fell on the couch. Her short giggle turned into a moan as he peppered kisses over her neck. Klaus maintained his weight on his elbows so he wouldn't crush her little frame under himself.

He sucked on her pulse point and quickly held her hands above her head with one hand when she tried to reach for his hair.

"Klaus"

Her moan shot a wave of pleasure right through his body. He trailed his other hand down her body. She was so perfect with all the curves in all the right places. He brought his hand to her leg and pulled it over the back of the couch in such an angle that both her legs were complete apart.

Caroline squirmed to close her legs. Not because she didn't want this but because this way she couldn't find any friction.

Keeping her legs apart, he placed himself in between them and looked her straight into her eyes. He stopped for a moment to take some respite and to give _her _some respite.

"Tired already, Mikaelson?" Caroline challenged, breathlessly, with a hint of a smirk on her face.

That brought a devilish glint in Klaus' eyes. "You're going to regret that, _sweetheart_" he said, before diving straight towards her.

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**A/N: And that is it! So Klaus and Caroline are doing it. Before rushing forward with your swords at me, all will be explained in the next chapter. Till then, cupcakes! **


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